Trump sends armed guards to hold off marching migrants
As US goes to the polls for crucial vote...
CAMOUFLAGED from head to toe and brandishing an assault rifle, this is one of the guards protecting the US border ahead of the migrant caravan’s arrival.
On the day of the midterm elections yesterday, the image shows the lengths Donald Trump is prepared to go to keep the Central American migrants out of the United States.
The image of the guard standing next to a sign which says: ‘Bienvenidos a los Estados Unidos’ (‘Welcome to the United States’) comes as the migrant caravan inches closer to the border.
Most of the group are now in Mexico City – 930 kilometres from the town of McAllen in Texas, which is the nearest crossing.
Troops and US border and custom protection officers have been taking part in training exercises as they prepare for a possible riot. The caravan, which at times has been 7,200-strong, is now believed to contain 5,000 migrants.
They have been marching for almost a month, across more than 1,600 kilometres, after leaving Honduras at the start of October amid rising unemployment and soaring violence.
As they crossed drug cartel-controlled territory known for hostage-taking and brutal violence, 100 members of the group, including children, have been declared missing – possibly kidnapped by human traffickers.
The migrants’ journey in search of a better life comes as an election advertisement by Mr Trump’s team was pulled from many of the major US television networks and social media site Facebook.
It featured footage of the caravan alongside an image of a Mexican man who entered the US illegally and killed two police officers in California in 2014. The ad, which critics have branded ignorant and racist, said: ‘Dangerous illegal criminals like cop-killer Luis Bracamontes don’t care about our laws.’ A message read: ‘Stop the caravan – vote Republican.’
There are now 4,800 troops at US towns bordering Mexico – 1,100 in California, 1,100 in Arizona and 2,600 in Texas, believed to be the most likely point of entry.
The figure was likely to reach 5,200 by the end of yesterday and climb to 7,000 in coming days.
But on Monday, an army chief suggested his men may just be there for show. Speaking at a university event in North Carolina. the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Joseph Dunford, said: ‘There is no plan for US military forces to be involved in the actual mission of denying people entry to the United States.’
His comments came after Mr Trump said migrants who threw rocks would be met with gunfire. He later said his remarks had been misinterpreted, adding: ‘If our soldiers or Border Patrol are going to be hit in the face with rocks, we’re going to arrest those people. That doesn’t mean shoot them. But we’re going to arrest those people quickly and for a long time.’
AS US voters went to the polls yesterday, Facebook deleted scores of fake accounts believed to be linked to ‘foreign entities’ trying to interfere in the elections.
The social media giant said it had shut down 30 Facebook and 85 Instagram accounts over what it called suspected ‘co-ordinated inauthentic behaviour’ to influence the outcome of a vote to decide which party controls Congress.
The announcement came after intelligence agencies warned that voters should be wary of Russian attempts to spread fake news.