With rifles and razor wire, National Guard and state troopers are blocking migrants at the border in El Paso
As cities on the Texas-Mexico border continue preparing for a possible influx of migrants and Title 42 remains in limbo, a shallow spot in the Rio Grande where thousands have recently crossed became the scene of a standoff Monday.
BY URIEL J. GARCÍA AND ALEX NGUYEN
DEC. 20, 2022
UPDATED: DEC. 21, 2022
EL PASO — National Guard members and state troopers formed a line on the banks of the Rio Grande on Tuesday and blocked dozens of migrants who had already crossed the river from surrendering to nearby Border Patrol agents.
About 75 men, women and children stood on a narrow strip of concrete between the river and the guard members, facing coils of razor wire, seven National Guard members holding rifles and two state troopers as a National Guard member holding a bullhorn told them in Spanish that they would not be able to enter the country here and directed them to a port of entry.
Border Patrol agents positioned behind the National Guard and state troopers watched the standoff. A Border Patrol spokesperson on site said Border Patrol agents would not process the migrants.
Under Title 42, the pandemic-era emergency health order that immigration officials have used to immediately expel migrants, ports of entry are closed to migrants seeking asylum.
https://www.texastribune.org/2022/12/20/texas-border-migrants-national-guard-troopers-blockade/#:~:text=Starting%20Monday%20night%2C%20National%20Guard%20and%20state%20troopers,crossed%20in%20a%20four-hour%20period%20earlier%20this%20month.
