Expulsion of Asylum Seekers From The US Reaches a 21-Year High

The U.S. Border Patrol made about 200,000 arrests at the southern border in July, marking the busiest month at the border in 21 years and a 12-percent increase over the previous month, according to the latest figures released by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

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In July, nearly 19,000 unaccompanied children crossed the border, while 76,000 parents and children crossed the border together as families, the second-highest total ever and a significant jump from June.

The CBP data only includes the number of arrests and does not account for people who made it across the border without being apprehended, typically single adults in search of work who do not intend to ask for asylum.

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) complained about transferring undocumented immigrants from the U.S. border to the Mexican border with Guatemala. This happens because of the application of Title 42, a regulation approved during the Donald Trump administration (2017-2021) that allows the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to prevent the entry of undocumented immigrants to the United States.

According to the United Nations Agency for Refugees (UNHCR), Title 24 prevents migrants from accessing asylum processes because it allows the authorities the return "in chain" of the migrants to third countries. This, however, contradicts the "Non-Refoulement" principle that prohibits returning people to a territory where their life or integrity is in danger.

On Tuesday, White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) began transferring families expelled under Title 42 to the interior of Mexico. She explained that the measure seeks to reduce the possibility that deportees try to re-offend and return to the United States.

Following the Trump-era rule, some 240 Guatemalans deported from McAllen (Texas) arrived on Thursday at the Tapachula Airport in Chiapas to be later transferred to the Mexico-Guatemala border.