Concerns About Spread of New Covid Strain Rise as Another Migrant Caravan Crosses Into US - Report

The border crisis in the United States has acquired additional relevance after a new COVID-19 strain was detected in South Africa earlier this week, with many saying it is more contagious and affects young people too.

A new caravan of illegal migrants that is approaching the US border has raised concerns over a possible surge of COVID-19 cases amid the threat of the omicron variant.

Meanwhile, some immigrants can be deported under the Title 42 of the Public Health Service Act, which authorizes the Border Patrol to rapidly expel people from countries with high COVID rates and a poor pandemic response.

According to former Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Acting Director Tom Homan, “now is the time to take Title 42 seriously and stop people from coming to the United States during this crisis.”

Noting that border agents perform "maybe up to 200 removals a day," Homan claimed they should strictly follow Title 42.

"This has turned into a public health issue because of this COVID variant, because of the opioids coming across, because of the fentanyl coming across," Homan said, adding that the situation at the border is also "a national security issue."

Reports about the pandemic situation at the border have caused fierce controversy, as the border authorities were accused of not complying with COVID-19 guidelines. Coronavirus rates in detention facilities have skyrocketed in the months of the most intense immigration influx amid reports that immigrants were held in close quarters without proper distancing and isolation.

Immigrants arriving in the US are not required to be vaccinated against coronavirus, and rumors emerged that instead of being detained, undocumented immigrants were released and transported into the interior of the US without proper COVID-19 checks.

The latest caravan, formed by residents of Haiti, Central America and Venezuela, has passed Tapachula, a city in Mexico near the Guatemalan border. This was the third caravan of migrants that has started to make its way from the south of Mexico, despite the ban of the Mexican authorities.

Mexican authorities failed to stop the wave of migrants by force and the first of the caravans has reached the state of Veracruz. The Mexican authorities have managed to reach an agreement with members of the second caravan, giving people the opportunity to live and work legally in Mexico.