Mexican stand-off
Trump threatens to seal border to end migrant mayhem
DONALD Trump has threatened to permanently close the US border with Mexico after violence flared when hundreds of migrants tried to gain entry into the States.
The President also demanded the Mexican government deport thousands of migrants back to Central America.
He said: “Mexico should move the flagwaving 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 USA. We will close the border permanently if need be.”
The Mexican authorities reacted by vowing to deport up to 500 who stormed the border.
Tension has mounted since “caravans” of Central American migrants – mainly from Honduras – began arriving in Tijuana a few weeks ago to attempt entry into the US. More than 5,000 have been camped in Tijuana.
On Sunday, US Border Patrol officers fired tear gas and rubber bullets into the crowd, which included families with young children, after being assaulted and hit with rocks.
The San Ysidro crossing between Tijuana and San Diego was also closed for several hours, stopping thousands travelling legally between the two coun-
tries. US Border Protection said: “Agents deployed tear gas to dispel the group because of the risk to agents’ safety.” At least two dozen canisters could later be seen on the Mexican side.
It was confirmed that 42 migrants who stormed the border were arrested on the US side. Thirty-nine people were held for offences on the Mexican side.
Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen said authorities would maintain a “robust” presence along the border and that anyone who damaged federal property or violated American sovereignty would be prosecuted.
She said: “We will not tolerate this type of lawlessness and will not hesitate to shut down ports of entry for security and public safety reasons.”
Mexico vowed to shore up security on its side of the border and the Interior Ministry said it would deport those who tried to “violently” enter the US.
US border agents said the vast majority of those massed at the border were economic migrants, who would not qualify for asylum in the US.
The stand-off threatens to become the first crisis for Mexico’s President-elect, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, 65, who takes office on Saturday.