Haitian migrants released in US on ‘very, very large scale’: report

Thousands of Haitian migrants that were camping under a bridge in a Texas city near the border with Mexico are being released into the United States, unidentified officials told The Associated Press.

One official with knowledge of operations at the border told the news service that the migrants are being released on a “very, very large scale.” 

The official, who requested anonymity, reportedly noted that most of the migrants are getting notices to visit an immigration office within 60 days.

According to the AP, the Department of Homeland Security has begun busing many migrants from cities along the Texas border including Del Rio to El Paso, Laredo and Rio Grande Valley. This week, it also reportedly added some flights to Tucson, Ariz., and have processed the Haitian migrants in those locations.

The U.S. has pushed back against Haitian migrants being allowed into the nation due to pandemic-related measures that prohibit them from seeking asylum at this time, and have returned some of them to Haiti, the AP noted.

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas reiterated that message in a Monday news conference.

“If you come to the United States illegally, you will be returned, your journey will not succeed, and you will be endangering your life and your family’s life,” he said at the time, according to the news service.

Another unidentified official told the AP in its new report that seven daily flights to Haiti were planned starting Wednesday.

The U.S. Border Patrol has come under fire for its treatment of Haitian migrants at the southern border after images circulated appearing to show agents on horseback grabbing and chasing individuals seeking to enter the U.S.

Vice President Harris condemned those actions on Tuesday, saying that they “deeply troubled” her.