World
Online system to seek asylum in US is quickly overwhelmed
TIJUANA, Mexico (AP) — Hours earlier than dawn, migrants at considered one of Mexico’s largest shelters get up and go browsing, hoping to safe an appointment to attempt to search asylum within the U.S. The day by day ritual resembles a race for live performance tickets when on-line gross sales start for a significant act, as about 100 folks glide their thumbs over telephone screens.
New appointments can be found every day at 6 a.m., however migrants discover themselves stymied by error messages from the U.S. authorities’s CBPOne cellular app that’s been overloaded because the Biden administration launched it Jan. 12.
Many can’t log in; others are capable of enter their data and choose a date, solely to have the display screen freeze at last affirmation. Some get a message saying they should be close to a U.S. crossing, regardless of being in Mexico’s largest border metropolis.
At Embajadores de Jesus in Tijuana, solely two of greater than 1,000 migrants acquired appointments within the first two weeks, says director Gustavo Banda.
“We’re going to proceed making an attempt, nevertheless it’s a failure for us,” Erlin Rodriguez of Honduras stated after one other fruitless run at an appointment for him, his spouse and their two youngsters one Sunday earlier than daybreak. “There’s no hope.”
Mareni Montiel of Mexico was elated to pick a date and time for her two youngsters — then didn’t get a affirmation code. “Now I’m again to zero,” stated Montiel, 32, who has been ready 4 months on the shelter, the place the sound of roosters fill the crisp morning air on the finish of a tough, grime street.
CBPOne changed an opaque patchwork of exemptions to a public well being order referred to as Title 42 beneath which the U.S. authorities has denied migrants’ rights to assert asylum since March 2020. Individuals who have come from different nations discover themselves in Mexico ready for an exemption or coverage change — except they attempt to cross illegally into the U.S.
If it succeeds, CBPOne may very well be utilized by asylum-seekers even when Title 42 is lifted as a protected, orderly different to unlawful entry, which reached the best stage ever recorded within the U.S. in December. It might additionally discourage massive camps on Mexico’s aspect of the border, the place migrants cling to unrealistic hopes.
However a variety of complaints have surfaced:
— Purposes can be found in English and Spanish solely, languages lots of the migrants don’t converse. Guerline Jozef, government director of the Haitian Bridge Alliance, stated authorities didn’t take “probably the most fundamental reality under consideration: the nationwide language of Haiti is Haitian Creole.” U.S. Customs and Border Safety says it plans a Creole model in February; it has not introduced different languages.
— Some migrants, significantly with darker pores and skin, say the app is rejecting required pictures, blocking or delaying functions. CBP says it’s conscious of some technical points, particularly when new appointments are made obtainable, however that customers’ telephones may contribute. It says a dwell picture is required for every login as a safety measure.
The difficulty has hit Haitians hardest, stated Felicia Rangel-Samponaro, director of The Sidewalk Faculty, which assists migrants in Reynosa and Matamoros, throughout from Texas’ Rio Grande Valley. Beforehand, about 80% of migrants admitted to hunt asylum within the space had been Haitian, Rangel-Samponaro stated. On Friday, she counted 10 Black folks amongst 270 admitted in Matamoros.
“We introduced development lights pointed at your face,” she stated. “These footage had been nonetheless not capable of undergo. … They’ll’t get previous the image half.”
— A requirement that migrants apply in northern and central Mexico doesn’t at all times work. CBP notes the app received’t work proper if the locator operate is switched off. It’s additionally making an attempt to find out if alerts are bouncing off U.S. telephone towers.
However not solely is the app failing to acknowledge that some persons are on the border, candidates exterior the area have been capable of circumvent the situation requirement through the use of digital personal networks. The company stated it has discovered a repair for that and is updating the system.
— Some advocates are disillusioned that there isn’t a express particular consideration for LGBTQ candidates. Migrants are requested if they’ve a bodily or psychological sickness, incapacity, being pregnant, lack housing, face a risk of hurt, or are beneath 21 years outdated or over 70.
Nonetheless, LGBTQ migrants will not be disqualified. At Casa de Luz, a Tijuana shelter for about 50 LGBTQ migrants, 4 rapidly acquired appointments. A transgender lady from El Salvador stated she didn’t test any bins when requested about particular vulnerabilities.
The U.S. started blocking asylum-seekers beneath President Donald Trump on the grounds of stopping the unfold of COVID-19, although Title 42 just isn’t utilized uniformly and plenty of deemed susceptible are exempted.
Beginning in President Joe Biden’s first yr in workplace till final week, CBP organized exemptions by means of advocates, church buildings, attorneys and migrant shelters, with out publicly figuring out them or saying what number of slots had been obtainable. The association prompted allegations of favoritism and corruption. In December, CBP severed ties with one group that was charging Russians.
For CBPOne to work, sufficient folks should get appointments to discourage crossing the border illegally, stated Leon Fresco, an immigration legal professional and former aide to Senate Majority Chief Chuck Schumer, a Democrat.
“If these appointments begin dragging out to 2 or three or 4 months, it’s going to be a lot more durable to maintain it going,” he stated. “If folks aren’t getting by means of, they received’t use this system.”
CBP, which schedules appointments as much as two weeks out, declines to say how many individuals are getting in. However Enrique Lucero, director of migrant affairs for the town of Tijuana, stated U.S. authorities are accepting 200 day by day in San Diego, the biggest border crossing. That’s about the identical because the earlier system however nicely under the variety of Ukrainians processed after Russia’s invasion final yr.
Josue Miranda, 30, has been staying at Embajadores de Jesus for 5 months and prefers the outdated system of working by means of advocacy teams. The shelter compiled an inner ready listing that moved slowly however allowed him to know the place he stood. Banda, the shelter director, stated 100 had been getting chosen each week.
Miranda packed his suitcases for him, his spouse and their three youngsters, believing his flip was imminent till the brand new on-line portal was launched. Now, the Salvadoran migrant has no concept when, or if, his probability will come. Nonetheless, he plans to maintain making an attempt by means of CBPOne.
“The issue is that the system is saturated and it’s chaos,” he stated after one other morning of failed makes an attempt.
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Trump could face renewed ISIS threat in Syria as Turkey goes after US ally
Concerns over a resurgence of the Islamic State in Syria remain heightened following the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime and an increase in attacks targeting U.S.-aligned Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
President-elect Donald Trump may well face another round against the extremist group as the SDF faces a reality in which it may have to divide its focus between ISIS and threats levied at it by Turkey.
The SDF said five of its soldiers were killed Saturday in attacks by Turkish-backed forces in northern Syria, reported Reuters.
TRUMP SAYS TURKEY ‘DID AN UNFRIENDLY TAKEOVER’ IN SYRIA AS US-BROKERED CEASE-FIRE APPEARS TO FAIL
The attacks came following an apparent collapse in a cease-fire agreement brokered by the Biden administration as the U.S. and the SDF ramp up efforts to counter ISIS.
National security advisor Jake Sullivan on Sunday told CNN that his “single biggest concern” is the return of ISIS, which was deemed “defeated” in 2019.
“ISIS loves vacuums,” he said in reference to the extremist group’s use of power struggles in places like North Africa to gain footholds. “What we see in Syria right now are areas that are basically ungoverned because of the fall of the Assad regime.
“Our goal is to ensure that we support the SDF — the Kurds — and that we keep ISIS in check,” he added.
The U.S. has long had to balance its campaign against ISIS in Syria — which it is fighting with the help of the Kurdish coalition forces, despite Turkey deeming the SDF as akin to the terrorist network the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) — with Washington’s partnership alongside Ankara as a NATO ally.
“The SDF and the Assad regime were the primary opponents of ISIS,” Bill Roggio, senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and founding editor of “The Long War Journal,” told Fox News Digital. “With the former gone and the latter under pressure from Turkish proxies, concerns about the expansion of ISIS are warranted.”
“Turkey wants to destroy the SDF,” Roggio confirmed. “Turkey has the ideal opportunity to destroy the SDF, and it will take advantage of this unique situation. I expect attack[s] against the SDF to increase.”
PRESIDENT-ELECT TRUMP’S SYRIA DILEMMA: INTERVENE OR LET IT TURN INTO TERROR STATE
The Biden administration has already taken steps to ramp up its campaign against ISIS, hitting more than 75 sites in a significant strike earlier this month on known “ISIS leaders, operatives and camps,” U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) confirmed.
The operation coincided with the fall of Damascus on Dec. 8 following a sweeping takeover of Aleppo, Hama and Homs by Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which was aided by the Turkey-backed Syrian National Army (SNA).
In addition, CENTCOM on Thursday killed ISIS leader Abu Yusif aka Mahmud using a precision airstrike in eastern Syria — an area where, according to Syrian news outlets, ISIS has been able to seize weapons depots belonging to the former Syrian military under the Assad regime amid the “chaos.”
SDF forces in an attempt to clamp down on ISIS uprisings captured 18 ISIS terrorists and suspected collaborators on Sunday near the city of Raqqa, which was once an ISIS stronghold, according to ANF News.
The campaign was reportedly done “in cooperation with the international coalition forces,” but CENTCOM has not yet confirmed whether the U.S. was involved.
But concern remains high that the SDF could see its operational abilities divided as attacks from the Turkey-backed SNA coalition forces increase — which could spell trouble for the upcoming Trump administration as it looks to prevent another resurgence of ISIS, while balancing U.S. relations with Turkey, which is further expected to exercise outsized influence over the new Syrian government.
“We continue to monitor the situation in Syria,” Brian Hughes, Trump-Vance Transition spokesperson said in response to questions from Fox News Digital. “President Trump is committed to diminishing threats to peace and stability in the Middle East and to protecting Americans here at home.”
World
Gaza’s Kamal Adwan Hospital director pleads for help before it’s ‘too late’
Israel orders emptying of medical facility with nearly 400 civilians inside, including babies who need oxygen and incubators.
The director of one of Gaza’s last partially functioning hospitals is appealing for help, saying Israeli forces have surrounded the medical facility.
Dr Hussam Abu Safia, director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, on Monday urged the international community to act “before it is too late”, calling the situation “horrifying”.
He said obeying an Israeli order to empty the facility would be “next to impossible” because nearly 400 civilians remain inside, including babies who need oxygen and incubators.
“The bombing continues from all directions, affecting the building, the departments and the staff. This is a serious and extremely horrifying situation,” Abu Safia said.
Outside the hospital in Beit Lahiya, Israeli forces have placed what is thought to be explosives at the gates. Witnesses said an automated guided vehicle delivered boxes with the word “danger” written on them.
Al Jazeera’s Gaza correspondent Tareq Abu Azzoum said the Israeli military has deployed automated remote vehicles called “explosive robots” around the hospital.
“[The robots] are loaded with tonnes of explosives that can lead to the destruction of the neighbourhood,” Abu Azzoum said.
“We’ve seen videos released by some of the medical workers inside Kamal Adwan Hospital showing how the Israeli military has been using these in the vicinity of the hospital,” he added, saying it could be a sign that further escalation might take place in the coming days.
“The Israeli military is systematically trying to exert ultimate pressure on the medical teams by causing severe destruction to the surroundings [of the hospital],” Abu Azzoum said.
Abu Safia said: “The world must understand that our hospital is being targeted with the intent to kill and forcibly displace us,” adding that the Israeli bombing did not stop throughout Sunday night, destroying homes and surrounding buildings.
“We urge the international community to intervene quickly and stop this fierce assault on us to protect the healthcare system, the workers and the patients within it,” the hospital director said.
Since Monday morning, the hospital has been targeted with bombs in its courtyards and on its rooftop dropped by quadcopters, once again threatening the hospital’s fuel and oxygen supplies, he said.
“The situation remains extremely dangerous and requires urgent international intervention before it is too late,” the doctor said.
Abu Safia made a similar appeal on Sunday, accusing Israel of directly bombing the hospital’s intensive care unit.
More than 14 months of Israeli attacks have devastated Gaza and displaced almost all of its 2.3 million people. More than 45,000 people, mostly children and women, have been killed in the offensive.
Israel’s genocide against Palestinians started shortly after a Hamas-led incursion inside Israeli territory on October 7, 2023 killed nearly 1,100 people, according to Israeli officials, and about 250 others were taken captive.
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