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Trump threatens to 'permanently' shut down border with Mexico

Monday, 26 November 2018 4:44 PM [ Last Update: Monday, 26 November 2018 4:49 PM ]

A group of Central American migrants run along the dry riverbed of the Tijuana River in an attempt to get to El Chaparral port of entry, in Tijuana, Baja California State, Mexico, near US-Mexico border, on November 25, 2018. (Photo by AFP)

President Donald Trump has called on Mexico to deport Central American migrants attempting to reach the United States, while threatening to "permanently" shut down the southern border.

Repeating his claim that many of the migrants are "stone cold criminals," Trump demanded Monday that Mexico send the migrants back to countries such as Guatemala and Honduras by airplane, bus, or "anyway you want."

Mexico should move the flag waving Migrants, many of whom are stone cold criminals, back to their countries. Do it by plane, do it by bus, do it anyway you want, but they are NOT coming into the U.S.A. We will close the Border permanently if need be. Congress, fund the WALL!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 26, 2018

The tweet comes amid tensions at the southern border where US Customs and Border Protection officials fired tear gas on hundreds of migrants near San Diego on Sunday.

The clashes prompted US officials to close the San Ysidro Port of Entry between San Diego and Tijuana for more than six hours.

Tensions flared further when dozens of migrants broke away from a larger group to try and cross the border.

Images quickly began to circulate on Twitter showing women and children fleeing the tear gas.

Families are frightened and soldiers are shooting tear gas at toddlers. We must choose to be better than this, and @realDonaldTrump expected nothing less when he deployed thousands of troops to the border with the order to shoot to kill. https://t.co/45py8jmR5Q
— Amnesty International (@amnestyusa) November 25, 2018

Some migrants, meanwhile, said they would attempt to cross over illegally after they were denied access at the port of entry, where they could claim asylum legally.

Hundreds of migrants, fleeing violence and poverty in Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador, have been waiting in Tijuana, Mexico, to get to the United States.

President Trump has repeatedly claimed that the migrant caravan is filled with "criminals" and "thugs," and has insisted they should wait in Mexico until their asylum claims are processed by US officials. Critics say it could never happen.

Trump has previously deployed thousands of troops to the southern border in anticipation of the migrants and signed a proclamation blocking certain immigrants from claiming asylum.

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