A U.S. federal judge has halted President Joe Biden's recent asylum regulation aimed at restricting access to asylum at the U.S.-Mexico border, Reuters reports.
The regulation was part of Biden's efforts to deter migration after the COVID-era Title 42 restrictions ended in May. The judge's ruling was in response to a legal challenge brought by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and other groups, who argued that the new asylum restrictions violated U.S. law.
The Biden administration appealed the ruling to the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, but the restrictions will remain in place for the next 14 days. The regulation, which took effect in May, presumed that most migrants are ineligible for asylum if they passed through other countries without seeking protection there first or if they failed to use legal pathways for U.S. entry.
The number of migrants caught crossing the border illegally decreased significantly after the implementation of the new regulation. However, it is uncertain whether this trend will continue if the asylum restrictions are blocked. In his ruling, Judge Jon Tigar, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, stated that U.S. law explicitly allows asylum claims regardless of whether the migrants crossed the border illegally.
He also pointed out that finding refuge in third countries, such as Belize, Mexico, or Colombia, is not feasible due to limited processing capacity and other factors. The Biden administration argued that new programs would allow thousands of migrants to enter the U.S., but Tigar deemed those programs irrelevant to the availability of asylum.
Migrants have been advised by the Biden administration to apply for appointments to approach a legal crossing through an app called CBP One. However, the evidence presented in the case indicates that migrants waiting in Mexico are at risk of violence. Humanitarian groups have warned about deteriorating conditions at migrant camps in dangerous Mexican border towns.
The ACLU attorney who argued the case emphasized that delaying the fight over the regulation puts many people fleeing persecution in grave danger. U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas defended the legality of the Biden asylum regulation but acknowledged that it would remain in place, for now, pending an appeal. He urged migrants to use lawful pathways for asylum and cautioned against believing the lies of smugglers.
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