At the southern border ahead of Title 42 ending
NBC News Senior National Correspondent Tom Llamas reports from Juarez, Mexico, where migrants are gathering at the border just hours before the end of the COVID-era Title 42 restrictions.
Border officials estimate that approximately 55,000 migrants may be in northern Mexico, waiting to cross into the United States.
Tom Llamas, reporting live from Juarez, Mexico, provides an update on the situation at the border.
Border agents recently instructed the migrants lined up on the El Paso side to start cleaning up their belongings, including sleeping bags, food, and clothes, as they may soon be processed and cleared out.
Overnight, there has been a noticeable transition at this section of the border, with additional barbed wire fencing and armed troops patrolling the area.
Mexican law enforcement has been absent in recent days, allowing migrants to freely pass through the barbed wire fence.
A hole was even cut in the fence, enabling them to reach the border wall and wait there.
Hundreds, if not thousands, of migrants have been waiting for days, with only a few dozen being processed at a time.
It appears that the authorities are now urging everyone to line up, indicating their intention to clear out this section of the border in Juarez before Title 42 expires tonight.
Meanwhile, the Biden administration’s plans for after Title 42 expires are coming to light.
Migrant families will not be able to be accommodated in detention centers due to their full capacity.
Instead, the head of the household, either the father or mother, will be required to wear a GPS ankle bracelet and adhere to a curfew.
Families that do not qualify for asylum will be deported and sent back to their home countries.
Tom Llamas recently spent time with a family in Juarez who have been waiting for five months.
They left their Mexican town due to fears that a cartel would kidnap their 13-year-old daughter.
The girl’s terror was evident during the interview.
The family believes they have proof that they need asylum in the United States to protect their daughter from disappearing if they return to their town.
They have a scheduled meeting with border officials on Saturday, but they had to navigate the complicated CBP 1 app to apply for it.
In fact, they had to take a class at the shelter to learn how to use the app and make the appointment.
These are some of the new measures imposed by the Biden administration to slow the surge of migrants at the historic border crossing.
As the end of Title 42 approaches, the situation at the southern border remains tense.
Migrants are anxiously awaiting their fate, while authorities try to manage the influx and implement new protocols to address the ongoing challenges.
