National Institute of Migration (INM): Mexico detained 16,000 foreign migrants in four days

    photo:REUTERS/Jose Torres

Mexico detained more than 16,000 migrants in a four-day span, including nearly 5,000 Venezuelans, the country's National Institute of Migration (INM) said Monday.

The INM said 16,096 migrants from 46 countries were detained in 22 Mexican states between Nov. 17 and 20.

The majority of the migrants were from Central and South American countries, including 4,968 Venezuelans, 2,987 Guatemalans, 1,385 Nicaraguans, 1,311 Hondurans and 1,285 Ecuadorians.

Aguascalientes, Chiapas, Durango, Hidalgo, Puebla, San Luis Potosi, Veracruz, and Zacatecas are among the states where the government agency increased services through migrant attention centers as a result of an influx of migrants and the threats they face, such as traffickers and freezing temperatures.

During his presidency, U.S. President Joe Biden has struggled with unprecedented numbers of migrants entering the country through Mexico, including 187,000 Venezuelans alone in fiscal year 2022.

Authorities in the United States and Mexico last month revealed a plan to send some unlawfully entering Venezuelan migrants back to Mexico. Biden's plan to discourage border crossings has been complicated by a judge's ruling earlier this month that the pandemic-era directive known as Title 42, used to send migrants to Mexico, is illegal.

Since then, tens of thousands of migrants have been discovered camped elsewhere in Mexico in subpar conditions. About 12,000 people, mostly from Venezuela, were discovered sleeping in backyards, on streets, and on wooden crates in the state of Oaxaca.