TIJUANA, Mexico (AP) – A group of Central Americans who journeyed in a caravan to the U.S. border resolved to turn themselves in and ask for asylum Sunday in a direct challenge to the Trump administration – only to have U.S. immigration officials announce that the San Diego crossing was already at capacity.
Nearly 200 migrants, many traveling with children, had decided to apply for protection at the nation’s busiest border crossing after many fled violence in their home countries, organizers said. The caravan got attention after President Donald Trump and members of his Cabinet called it a threat to the United States.
Shortly before the migrants were expected to arrive, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said San Diego’s San Ysidro crossing would not immediately be able to handle more asylum seekers. It can hold about 300 people at a time, and officials had been warning that it might fill up.
“At this time, we have reached capacity at the San Ysidro port of entry for CBP officers to be able to bring additional persons traveling without appropriate entry documentation into the port of entry for processing,” Commissioner Kevin McAleenan said in a statement. “Those individuals may need to wait in Mexico as CBP officers work to process those already within our facilities.”
Central Americans who travel with a caravan of migrants they walk towards the border before crossing the border and request asylum in the United States, in Tijuana, Mexico, Sunday, April 29, 2018. A group of Central Americans who journeyed in a caravan to the U.S. border resolved to turn themselves in and ask for asylum Sunday in a direct challenge to the Trump administration – only to have U.S. immigration officials announce that the San Diego crossing was already at capacity. (AP Photo/Hans-Maximo Musielik)He said the crossing could take in additional people as space and resources become available.