Mexico seeks inquiry into US tear gas use
WASHINGTON/TIJUANA: Mexico’s foreign ministry presented a diplomatic note to the United States Government yesterday calling for ‘‘a full investigation’’ into what it described as nonlethal weapons directed towards Mexican territory on Monday, the ministry said.
The request came a day after US authorities fired tear gas towards migrants in Mexico, near the border crossing separating Tijuana from San Diego, California, after some rushed through border fencing into the US.
More than 40 were arrested on the US side, US border authorities said.
US President Donald Trump told reporters he would close the border if migrants ‘‘charge’’ the barrier. During the melee, US authorities shut San Ysidro, the country’s busiest border crossing, for several hours.
‘‘We would close it and we’ll keep it closed if we’re going to have a problem. We’ll keep it closed for a long period of time,’’ the president said.
The incident was the latest chapter in a saga that has pitted Trump’s hardline immigration policies against thousands of migrants who have made their way through Mexico from Central American countries.
Tensions had been growing in Tijuana, and Trump said on Sunday the migrants would have to wait in Mexico until their individual asylum claims were resolved in the US. That would be a significant shift in asylum policy that could keep Central Americans in Mexico for more than a year.
Trump went further yesterday, saying Mexico should send the Central Americans, mostly Hondurans, back home.
‘‘Mexico should move the flag waving Migrants, many of whom are stone cold criminals, back to their countries. Do it by plane, do it by bus, do it anyway you want, but they are NOT coming into the U.S.A. We will close the Border permanently if need be. Congress, fund the WALL!’’ he tweeted.
US government agencies have defended the response to the incident at the San Ysidro crossing. News pictures showing children fleeing tear gas prompted sharp criticism from some politicians and charities. British aid group Oxfam said the use of tear gas was shameful.
‘‘Images of barefoot children choking on tear gas thrown by US Customs and Border Patrol should shock us to our core,’’ Vicki Gass, of Oxfam America, said. — Reuters