US used ‘unnecessary force’ on Haitians asylum-seekers: Report
United States border agents on the Mexican border used “unnecessary force” against Haitian asylum-seekers last year, a new federal report has found.
US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) made the announcement on Friday following a 511-page report that got launched after dramatic scenes at the Rio Grande River drew widespread condemnation and calls for accountability.
The CBP report released on Friday blamed a “lack of command control and communication” for agents using their horses to forcibly block and move migrants back across the river last September near Del Rio, Texas.
In 2021, US Vice President Kamala Harris condemned the Texas border agents’ cruel treatment of the asylum-seekers from Haiti.
"What I saw depicted, those individuals on horseback treating human beings the way they were was horrible," Harris told reporters on Tuesday at an event at the White House.
Video footage and photos of the September 19 incident showed border agents whipping the Haitian asylum-seekers, which caused outrage among advocacy
“On multiple occasions, several mounted agents used force or the threat of force to drive migrants back into the Rio Grande river despite the fact that the migrants were already within the United States,” CBP Commissioner Chris Magnus said during a news conference.
As part of the investigation, four Border Patrol employees, all of whom have been placed on administrative duty since the investigation began months ago, have been recommended for disciplinary action, which will come separately.
“We are already taking steps to ensure a situation like what occurred in Del Rio doesn’t happen again,” Magnus said.
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