The U.S. government has begun sending asylum seekers near the border of Arizona back to Mexico to await their court hearings.
Authorities said Thursday the effort is part of an already existing program that is now being expanded. Migrant Protection Protocols require asylum-seekers to wait for their immigration court hearings in Mexico.
Under the new expansion, the program will now apply to a port of entry in Arizona. That’s in addition to ports of entry Texas and California where it was already in use.
Previously, migrants encountered in that area were sent to El Paso, Texas, where their return to Mexico was processed.
Now, migrants will be scheduled in Juarez, Mexico, about 350 miles away.
Advocates say the initiative endangers migrants—leaving them at risk of violence in Mexico.
But U.S. authorities have praised the program, saying it has significantly lowered illegal border crossings.
