Editor’s note: Here is a look at immigration-related news around the U.S. this week. Questions? Tips? Comments? Email the VOA immigration team: [email protected].
Chinese Still Largest Group of Foreign Students in US
Students from China retained their position in 2023 as the largest group of international students in the United States. Despite a slight dip, China is still the leading country of origin for foreign students pursuing an education in the U.S. VOA’s immigration reporter Aline Barros has more.
As Holidays Approach, Migrants Face Eviction From New York City Shelters
It could be a cold, grim new year for thousands of migrant families living in New York City’s emergency shelter system. With winter setting in, they are being told they need to clear out, with no guarantee they’ll be given a bed elsewhere. Homeless migrants and their children were limited to 60 days in city housing under an order issued in October by Mayor Eric Adams, a move the Democrat says is necessary to relieve a shelter system overwhelmed by asylum-seekers crossing the southern U.S. border. The Associated Press reports.
Lawsuit Challenges Texas Efforts to Restrict Illegal Border Crossings
Civil rights groups filed a lawsuit Tuesday challenging a new Republican-backed law in Texas that will give state officials broad powers to arrest, prosecute and deport people who illegally cross the U.S.-Mexico border. The lawsuit filed in federal court in Austin, Texas, claims that the law signed by Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott on Monday unlawfully infringes upon the authority of the federal government under the U.S. Constitution to enforce the nation’s immigration laws. Reuters reports.
US Reopens Key Rail Crossings Between Texas, Mexico
The United States Friday reopened two rail crossings between Texas and Mexico, five days after they were closed in response to increased migrant traffic. U.S. Customs and Border Protection said operations resumed midafternoon Friday at the international railway crossing bridges in Eagle Pass and El Paso, Texas. The closures had prompted alarm from railroads, the agriculture industry and some lawmakers over the economic impact to export trade. Reuters reports.
Victims in Oregon Small Plane Crash Were Resettled Afghan Refugees
Three men who died in a small plane crash in Oregon were Afghan air force pilots who fought with the American military and came to the U.S. as refugees after Afghanistan fell to the Taliban in 2021, according to groups that helped with their resettlement. The Associated Press reports.
Trump Defends Comments About Immigrants ‘Poisoning the Blood’ of America
Former U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday defended his comments about migrants crossing the southern border "poisoning the blood" of America, and he reinforced the message while denying any similarities to fascist writings others had noted. The Associated Press reports.
Immigration around the world
Jungle Between Colombia, Panama Becomes Highway for Migrants From Around the World
Once nearly impenetrable for migrants heading north from Latin America, the jungle between Colombia and Panama this year became a speedy but still treacherous highway for hundreds of thousands of people from around the world. Driven by economic crises, government repression and violence, migrants from China to Haiti decided to risk three days of deep mud, rushing rivers and bandits. Enterprising locals offered guides and porters, set up campsites and sold supplies to migrants, using color-coded wristbands to track who had paid for what. The Associated Press reports.
Human Rights Bodies Condemn Treatment of Refugees in Malawi
The U.N. says Malawi is home to tens of thousands of refugees fleeing conflict in Africa’s Great Lakes region. However, human rights groups say some are being rounded up and moved against their will. Chimwemwe Padatha has more from Lilongwe, Malawi.
Migration to Europe Increases as Syrians, Afghans Top Asylum-Seeker Lists
The number of people seeking asylum in European countries this year is projected to surpass 1 million, reaching levels not seen since 2016 when 1.16 million asylum-seekers were reported. Syrians and Afghans continue to be the two largest groups of asylum-seekers, as they have been for several years, submitting 100,000 and 86,000 applications respectively from January to September 2023, according to the European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA). Produced by Akmal Dawi.
EU Agrees New Rules on Hosting Migrants, Seeks to Cut Numbers
The European Union reached agreement early Wednesday on new rules designed to share out the cost and work of hosting migrants more evenly and to limit the numbers of people coming in. Representatives of the European Parliament and of EU governments reached an accord after all-night talks on EU laws collectively called the New Pact on Migration and Asylum that should take effect next year. Reuters reports.
News Brief
— The Department of Justice (DOJ), including the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), including the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), released a report that “reaffirms that the departments found no evidence that any foreign government-affiliated actor compromised the security or integrity of any election infrastructure.”
— The Department of Homeland Security (DHS)released data that shows “over 5,500 pounds of illicit fentanyl have already been seized by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in the first two months of Fiscal Year (FY) 2024, with over 3,000 pounds seized in November alone. Additionally, over 750 pill presses were seized in November, bringing the total number seized for the first two months of FY 2024 to over 1,800.”
