US officials launched an investigation Tuesday, a day after at least 50 immigrants, including 22 Mexicans, were found dead in and around an abandoned truck on the side of the road in San Antonio, Texas. human traffickers.
It didn’t take long for the opposition to criticize the Democrat for his responsibility in this drama, one of the worst in the country’s history, accusing him of failing to enforce a strict border policy.
The discovery came overnight when a San Antonio city worker heard a call for help coming from near a highway he was working on and opened the back door of the truck.
Rescuers removed 46 bodies and 16 “conscious” people, including four children, who were taken to nearby hospitals, according to Fire Chief Charles Hood.
“The patients we saw were hot to the touch, suffering from heatstroke, heat exhaustion, because there was no evidence of water in the vehicle,” he said after a day when temperatures neared 40 degrees Celsius.
An immigration police official told AFP on Tuesday that the death toll had risen to 50 on Tuesday, without specifying whether new bodies had been found or whether some of the injured had died in hospital.
Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said at a press conference, “This is such a great misfortune … ” in the press.
López Obrador added that in his meeting with Biden on July 12, the issue of immigration would be “central, fundamental”. It is “bitter proof” of the need to support policies aimed at development so that people do not have to leave their place of origin.
-The “criminal industry” -According to the preliminary elements of the investigation, Biden assured that “this tragedy was caused by traffickers who “exploit” immigrants “without respect” for their lives.
The American president urged to strengthen the fight against a “million dollar crime industry” and highlighted that 2,400 arrests have been made since joint action between the United States and other countries in the region was launched three months ago.
Republicans were not convinced. Texas Governor Greg Abbott, who advocates hard immigration, blamed the Democrat’s “deadly open border policies”. “These deaths are on Biden’s account,” he tweeted.
“Human traffickers exploit open borders and the most vulnerable payments with their lives,” said Texas Senator Ted Cruz.
Immigrant inflows slowed during the pandemic, but increased significantly after the election of Joe Biden. Many pass through the city of San Antonio, 240 km from the Mexican border.
three detainees
“Tonight we face a terrible human tragedy,” San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg said at a news conference.
According to the police chief’s statement, three people were arrested. However, William McManus said, “We don’t know if they are connected to the facts.”
The Department of Homeland Security has announced that it has launched a federal investigation into “suspected human trafficking.”
Border police are involved in the investigation, said their boss, Chris Magnus, who said the tragedy showed “the desperation of migrants who want to risk their lives at the hands of callous traffickers”.
His boss said about 60 rescuers were mobilized to deal with the remains and received psychological support.
“Pain”
Trucks like the one found in San Antonio are a common mode of transportation used by immigrants trying to enter the United States.
Travel is extremely dangerous, especially since such vehicles often lack ventilation or cooling systems.
On June 14, border guards found 80 migrants hiding in the back of a truck during a routine operation near the town of Laredo.
San Antonio was the scene of a similar tragedy in 2017, when 10 people drowned in a shipping container bound for the United States. The truck’s air conditioner was damaged and the ventilation gap was sealed.
Although the truck is believed to have carried as many as 200 people, dozens of people were hospitalized for heat stroke and dehydration – most fled when the vehicle stopped in a parking lot.
The truck driver was sentenced to life imprisonment.
Pope Francis on Tuesday expressed his “pain” over the immigration-related tragedies, citing what happened in Texas and the deaths of dozens last week as they tried to enter Melilla, Spain.
UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric said Morocco and Spain “used excessive force” against a group of migrants this weekend.
“People who act have rights and they must be respected and often we find that they are not,” he added.
Hours ago, Ravina Shamdasani, spokesperson for the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, called for an independent investigation of the facts.
source: Noticias
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