US launches teargas at migrants
US BORDER agents launched tear gas into Mexico this week to deter a group of migrants that one official called “a violent mob” from crossing over from Tijuana, according to a witness and the US government.
Clouds of the noxious gas could be seen wafting up from around the fence at the border. One migrant picked up a canister and threw it back into US territory. US officials said the group had attacked agents with projectiles, but a witness did not see any migrants throwing rocks at US agents.
Tijuana has become a flashpoint in the debate over US immigration policy, which has been intensified by the recent deaths of two migrant children in American custody and a partial US government shutdown over US President Donald Trump’s demand for $5 billion (R72bn) in funding for a wall along the border with Mexico.
Mexico’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Roberto Velasco, said Mexico “advocates respect for migrants’ human rights, security and integrity, while calling for respect for laws on both sides of the border.”
More than 150 Central American migrants approached an area of the border in Tijuana in the Playas neighbourhood near the beach late on Monday.
US security personnel fired tear gas into Mexico after midnight as some migrants prepared to climb a border fence, according to the witness. During a second attempt, migrants began to pass youths and children over the razor wire along the fencing to the US side.
US Department of Homeland Security spokesperson, Katie Waldman, called the group “a violent mob” and said they had thrown projectiles at agents who responded with “the minimum force necessary to defend themselves”.
“Congress needs to fully fund the border wall,” Waldman said.
US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said the gas was aimed upwind of people throwing rocks on the Mexican side who obstructed agents from helping the children being passed over razor wire.
Human rights group Amnesty International called for an independent investigation.
CBP said most of the migrants attempting to cross returned to Mexico, while 25 people, including two teenagers, were detained.
Thousands of Central American migrants have been camping at shelters in Tijuana since arriving in November after travelling in caravans across Mexico to reach the US border, where many have hoped to request asylum.
Meanwhile, Democratic and Republican congressional leaders were expected to attend a briefing on border security at the White House yesterday.
House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi said Democrats would take action to “end the Trump shutdown” by passing legislation today to reopen government.
The White House invitation came after House Democrats released their plan to re-open the government without approving money for a border wall – unveiling two bills to fund shuttered government agencies and put hundreds of thousands of federal workers back on the job. | Reuters AP