By Jose Luis Gonzalez
CHIHUAHUA, Mexico (Reuters) – Migrants attempting to elude apprehension ignited blankets and mattresses at a camp in the northern Mexican city of Chihuahua during a sweep by government forces to clear the area in the early hours of Saturday. The enforcement operation near the U.S. border transpired just prior to the inauguration on Monday of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, who has criticized Mexico’s government for perceived inaction in stemming migration to the U.S. and issued threats of extensive tariffs.
Approximately 250 Mexican officials, including National Guard military police donning anti-riot gear, encircled the encampment around midnight, as observed by a Reuters witness. Migrants commenced setting fire to mattresses and blankets in protest, while attempting to exit the site with infants and possessions. No fatalities or injuries were documented in the blaze, which was swiftly extinguished.
Mexico’s migration agency did not immediately respond to requests for comment. An unofficial migration officer disclosed to Reuters that the objective of the operation was to relocate the migrants to Mexico’s southern border, where they would be instructed to return to their countries of origin. The number of individuals detained remained unspecified.
A significant portion of the 150 migrants comprised Venezuelan families who had sought refuge at the Chihuahua city camp, situated approximately 220 miles (360 km) from Ciudad Juarez, a border city adjacent to El Paso, Texas, while en route to the U.S. Venezuelan migrant Daniel Barrios, accompanying a woman carrying an infant and a child, expressed surprise at the abrupt police presence.
Barrios recounted the authorities surrounding the camp, stating they indicated a need for discussion and an impending inspection. He questioned the necessity of mobilizing substantial police and military forces for an inspection that could have been conducted during daylight. Barrios halted his remarks upon spotting officials in the distance, urging immediate movement.
Another family that fled the camp voiced confusion and fear. A woman, tearfully embracing two children, and two men cradling toddlers, witnessed billowing red smoke in the backdrop. One of the men articulated their disorientation and apprehension, remarking on the sudden arrival of police and migration officials at the shelter, leaving them bewildered and anxious.
“The police and migration officials arrived. We arrived at this shelter today, and we are bewildered by the situation,” one of the men expressed. “We are disoriented. We are scared.”
(Reporting by Jose Luis Gonzalez, Writing by Daina Beth Solomon, editing by Deepa Babington)
