Mexican officials on Wednesday destroyed an immigrant camp situated near the Rio Grande with bulldozers. The site in Matamoros, Mexico, is across the border from Brownsville, Texas.
Before the destruction, there were some 200 migrants waiting to enter the U.S. across the southern border. Fox News reported that many of those displaced by the bulldozers fled across the river and onto American soil.
The camp was destroyed during U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s visit with Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. The sides are discussing the ongoing border crisis and each other’s responsibilities.
This should’ve been done years ago. What did Joe give Mexico to get this done? Under president Trump, he told them to stem the flow or lose all US $$, I can’t see Joe and blinken doing that. They probably agreed to give Cartel members citizenship!! https://t.co/2Q1YZcldiJ
— David Paulides (@canammissing) December 29, 2023
When word spread about the Mexican government’s action, local officials told the Associated Press that they merely pushed aside tents that were unoccupied or abandoned.
Segismundo Doguin explained to the AP that “what we are doing is removing any tents that we see are empty.”
That claim met with a harsh denial from a Honduran immigrant. Identified only as Jose, he told Fox News that “they ran us out.” The witness said a short notice was given to the migrants occupying the site, and once the bulldozing started “you had to run for your life to avoid an accident.”
The migrant gathering at the border first assembled in late 2022. Some already had left for the U.S., but many others reportedly remained as bulldozers moved into the shelters.
Some of the migrants reportedly raced across the border into Texas, while others fled to other encampments. About 70 migrants are believed to have crossed the Rio Grande to seek asylum after the destruction of the temporary site.
There was no word of injuries or fatalities, though there were several drownings there in recent days.
The incident came amid a flurry of diplomatic activity between U.S. and Mexican officials. Each side claims the other should do more, which is undoubtedly true.
Daily arrests at the border reached as high as 10,000 migrants in December. The pattern established under the Biden administration is for illegals to hurriedly turn themselves in to authorities when they cross the border.
With an immediate asylum claim, they know chances are very high that they will be resettled into the nation’s interior. Several million have already taken advantage of the historically lax border policies under the current White House.
