The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
Reported migrant expulsions from the US have left families with young children "distraught and disorientated" in overcrowded shelters in Mexico, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) said on Tuesday.
The development followed border policy reforms recently introduced by the Biden Administration, which include the reported intention to expand the use of the COVID-19 pandemic-related "Title 42" public health order.
UNHCR spokesperson Shabia Mantoo described the humanitarian situation at the border as “serious”.
She noted that from 6 to 10 January, an estimated 531 Cubans and 141 Nicaraguans had been deported from the United States, under the “Title 42” public health order.
Shelters for the new arrivals are overcrowded and many have been forced to sleep in tents without adequate clothing, Ms. Mantoo said, adding that there was an urgent need for food, hygiene kits and documentation advice.
The development follows last week’s warning from UN human rights chief Volker Türk that the US reform would permit the “fast-track expulsion to Mexico” of 30,000 Venezuelans, Haitians, Cubans and Nicaraguans each month.
ends
STORY: US-Mexico border expulsions - UNHCR
TRT: 1’35”
SOURCE: UNTV CH
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
DATELINE: 17 January 2023
HYBRID PRESS BRIEFING
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
SHOTLIST
- SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) Shabia Mantoo, UNHCR Spokesperson:
“According to information gathered by UNHCR-IOM in the field. We have seen that there have been some expulsions to Mexico under Title 42 already. So, I don't have the latest numbers, but I've got estimates. Between 6th and 7th of January they were approximately 531 Cubans and 141 Nicaraguans. But as I mentioned, this is just for that period.”
“So this is this is happening. And we know that the humanitarian situation at the border is serious. Families with young children are arriving distraught and disoriented, shelters are overcrowded, and many people are staying in outdoor tents with adequate clear clothing for lower temperatures overnight. So, we know that there are urgent needs for shelter, food assistance and shelter materials, mattresses, blankets, hygiene kits and so on, as well as legal temporary documentation in Mexico.”
“UNHCR and partners are providing protection, counseling and orientation to people that have been expelled under Title 42 to Mexico on their options to access protection. However, the current needs exceed the existing capacity, but we're also working with shelters along Mexico's northern border to expand reception capacity with infrastructure and to be able to provide relief.”
- Medium shot of the speakers on the podium at press conference room.
- Cutaway medium lateral shot of journalists writing on their laptops.
- Closer shot of UN Staff members in the press conference room.
Similar Stories
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
“A series of new Israeli operations and settlement plans in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, risk seriously undermining the viability of a Palestinian state and the realisation of the Palestinians’ right to self-determination,” the UN Human Rights Spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan told the bi-weekly press conference in Geneva today.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNIS
UN voices concern over chemical spraying incident on Lebanon’s Blue Line
The UN reiterated concerns on Friday at reports that Israeli forces sprayed herbicide over areas north of the Blue Line separating Lebanon from Israel. The development poses a “serious humanitarian risk” to civilians living there, said the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), briefing journalists in Geneva.
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO
Gaza: Five patients evacuated as Rafah reopens while ‘too many stayed behind’ – WHO
As time is running out for thousands of critically ill patients in Gaza, hope is alive for medical evacuations to increase with the reopening of the Rafah crossing in the southern part of the Strip, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNOG , OHCHR
This Sunday marks five years of crisis in Myanmar. Jeremy Laurence, spokesperson for the UN Human Rights, and James Rodehaver, chief of the Myanmar team, today spoke on the conduct of recent military-imposed elections, deploring the failure to respect the fundamental human rights of the country’s citizens. The process served only to exacerbate violence and societal polarization.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNICEF
Brutal Gaza war erased years of progress on education, in an “assault on the future itself” – UNICEF
Restoring Gaza’s shattered education system is “lifesaving” and getting children back into schools must be an immediate priority, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , HRC
Volker Türk, the UN Human Rights High Commissioner, made the following remarks during a briefing to a Special Session on Iran at the Human Rights Council.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNRWA , UNOPS , UNIS
Amid the launch of President Trump's Board of Peace and reconstruction talks on Gaza, UN aid agencies insisted on Friday that what Gazans need most is immediate relief from the ongoing humanitarian catastrophe there.
2
6
1
2
Edited News , Press Conferences , Images | HRC
At UN, war crimes probe pledges to continue to work for all impacted by Hamas-Israel conflict
As President Trump launched the international Board of Peace plan for Gaza on Thursday, top independent rights experts tasked by the UN Human Rights Council with investigating grave abuses linked to the Hamas-Israel war pledged to continue their work seeking justice and accountability for all.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
UN Human Rights Office Spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani said Tuesday UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk was outraged by the repeated large-scale attacks by the Russian Federation on energy infrastructure in Ukraine.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
UN warns against repeating abuses in South Kordofan that occurred in El Fasher.
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA , UNICEF
Mozambique floods heighten disease, malnutrition risks – UN agencies
Catastrophic flooding in Mozambique is causing massive disruption to lives and livelihoods across the country, increasing the risk of disease and exposing urban areas to crocodiles, UN humanitarians warned on Tuesday.
2
1
2
Press Conferences , Edited News | OCHA
Yemen: Children are dying and it’s going to get worse, aid veteran warns
In Yemen, renewed political instability threatens and economic woes linked to the war to complicate the already difficult task of helping vulnerable people suffering from deepening hunger, illness and displacement, the UN's top aid official there said on Monday.