Biden to allow into US thousands of asylum-seekers who were forced to remain in Mexico

The Biden administration will begin allowing Central American asylum-seekers who had been forced to remain in Mexico into the United States to have their claims heard.

The Department of Homeland Security announced Friday that starting Feb. 19, the thousands of migrants who had been forced to wait in Mexico for months under the Trump administration's Migrant Protection Protocols will be allowed into the U.S. for processing. Approximately 25,000 asylum-seekers have open, undecided cases and will be brought in.

“As President Biden has made clear, the U.S. government is committed to rebuilding a safe, orderly, and humane immigration system,” said Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. “This latest action is another step in our commitment to reform immigration policies that do not align with our nation’s values. Especially at the border, however, where capacity constraints remain serious, changes will take time."