Security drill at the U.S.-Mexico border prior to the end of Title 42, the rule that allows ‘hot returns’.
A security drill was conducted Wednesday night. at the San Ysidro International Port of Entry by U.S. National Guard and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents, which was clearly visible from the Mexican side in the city of Tijuana.
The security exercise was conducted prior to the culmination of Title 42 in U.S. territory, this to. measure their ability to close off access in the event of an emergency, i.e., an attempted mass land crossing of migrants.
Uncertainty at the U.S.-Mexico border grows hours before the end, this Thursday, of Title 42, a measure adopted by Donald Trump (2017-2021) and later continued by President Joe Biden to expel migrants on the grounds of the covid-19 pandemic, an emergency declaration that is about to end in the US.
At the crossing from Tijuana to San Diego, the agents were deployed in lanes 28 to 34, where they conducted various containment maneuversIn addition, several gas bombs were dropped, and during the approximately six minutes that the deployment lasted, some detonations were also heard.
On May 5, border agents also conducted a similar drill, as they hope that with the completion of Title 42 dozens of migrants will arriveby land to seek humanitarian asylum on U.S. soil.
According to CBP, these actions are taken with the intent to inhibit attempts to crossings by undocumented persons.
Following the end of Title 42, U.S. authorities have indicated that the application of Title 8 will continue, which states that “individuals and families arriving without authorization . may be deported and non-citizens may be deported to their country of origin.”
Just last May 2, the government headed by Joe Biden announced that as of this 10th day, the following would be deployed. 1,500 soldiers along the border with Mexico and at the request of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), to support CBP agents.
The region is facing an unprecedented migratory flow, with more than 2.76 million undocumented migrants intercepted by the United States at the U.S.-Mexico border in FY2022.
