Caravan of 6,000 migrants continues to make its way to the US – with most heading toward El Paso: New video shows migrants atop train in Mexico before illegally crossing the border

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By Maya Cantina

  • The crisis at the southern border is showing no signs of slowing as a 6,000-strong migrant caravan travels toward the US  
  • Footage captured groups of migrants clung to the side of a speeding train in hopes of making it to the porous border 
  • It comes as a new daily record was set at the southern border at over 9,600 migrant crossings per day in December, up from 6,800 in November 

Desperate migrants were seen clinging to the side of ‘The Beast’ train as it barreled towards the US-Mexico border, part of a huge 6,000-strong caravan currently headed towards America. 

Footage of the packed train showed it moving through Chihuahua, Mexico, at breakneck speed, with several dozen additional migrants finding space on the roof in hopes of continuing their journey to the border. 

A large portion of the migrant caravan is expected to be headed towards El Paso, Texas, one of several border areas that have seen thousands of asylum seekers pass through each month. 

It comes as border agents reported an average of over 9,600 migrant crossings per day in December, the highest number ever recorded. In November, the figure stood at 6,800, meaning the border has seen over 3,000 more arrivers per day this month. 

Over 6,000 migrants are making their way in a huge caravan towards the US-Mexico border, with officials sounding the alarm at the unsustainable levels of border crossings this year 

Migrants depart from Tapachula, Mexico, and head north towards the border. Many are believed to be heading towards El, Paso, Texas

Migrants depart from Tapachula, Mexico, and head north towards the border. Many are believed to be heading towards El, Paso, Texas 

Footage captured several large groups of migrants desperately clinging to a train, hoping to join the over 9,600 migrants crossing the border every day this month

Footage captured several large groups of migrants desperately clinging to a train, hoping to join the over 9,600 migrants crossing the border every day this month 

The 6,000 migrants in the caravan have been moving steadily towards America for weeks, taking a similar route to hundreds of thousands before them traveling through difficult terrain. 

Over Christmas, thousands spent the holiday period in shelters and camps in Chihuahua, after the latest wave moved into the area several days prior. 

According to Mexican news outlet El Dario de Chihuahua, the day after Christmas a camp named ‘El Alamillo’ – close to the Alamillo train station – was already empty, as the flood of people moves on to its next stage in Juarez. 

The outlet also noted that a large amount of trash and discarded belongings were left strewn across the area as the migrants made a hasty exit. 

While the caravan moves north, the city of Jimenez, at the southern tip of Chihuahua, saw another 2,500 migrants over Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, reports KFOR. 

Because trains in many areas on the typical migrant route were halted over Christmas, some reportedly told officials they hopped off trains further south at Durango, Mexico, and walked five hours to Chihuahua to avoid missing the next move forward. 

The caravan notably started its trek through Mexico days before US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken visited the city. 

The United States earlier this month temporarily shuttered several crossings, including two key rail bridges, to redeploy enforcement resources elsewhere across the border amid soaring migrant numbers, a pivotal issue in next year’s U.S. elections.

A migrant bows while awaiting Border Patrol transport at the U.S.-Mexico border near Lukeville, Arizona on Christmas

A migrant bows while awaiting Border Patrol transport at the U.S.-Mexico border near Lukeville, Arizona on Christmas

Over Christmas, thousands spent the holiday period in shelters and camps. To keep warm, some are seen starting fires at one camp in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico on December 28

Over Christmas, thousands spent the holiday period in shelters and camps. To keep warm, some are seen starting fires at one camp in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico on December 28 

Migrants gather near the border wall after crossing the Rio Bravo river, as a border patrol agent commands the group

Migrants gather near the border wall after crossing the Rio Bravo river, as a border patrol agent commands the group 

But Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said on Thursday that both US and Mexican officials agreed to keep border crossings open. 

‘This agreement has been reached, the rail crossings and the boarder bridges are already being opened to normalize the situation,’ Lopez Obrador told a morning press conference. 

With anger growing in America at the unrelenting tide of migrants heading to the border, Mexican authorities have been accused of doing little to find a solution to the crisis. 

When the 2,500 migrants arrived at Jimenez, the town’s mayor shared on Facebook his pride in helping the influx move north towards the border. 

‘Let us remember that the purpose of life is to serve, to show compassion and be willing to help others,’ said Mayor Marco Juarez Torres. ‘Thus, we availed the Manuel Gomez Morin Gym as a temporary shelter for the migrants newly arrived to our city.’ 

Although the number of migrants in the caravan reportedly stands at 6,000, there are fears it could continue to grow significantly as Mexican residents join the group in hopes of entering America.  

Officials have been warning for some time that resources are stretched thinner and thinner by the unrelenting numbers of migrant crossings

Officials have been warning for some time that resources are stretched thinner and thinner by the unrelenting numbers of migrant crossings 

Migrants walk to a processing facility as directed by Border Patrol at the U.S.-Mexico border near Lukeville

Migrants walk to a processing facility as directed by Border Patrol at the U.S.-Mexico border near Lukeville

Local media indicates that Juarez is the final destination for many as it provides access to El Paso, Texas. 

While El Paso struggles, it is not alone, with two other border towns not considered migrant crossing hotspots as they set continue to set records.

Lukeville, Arizona saw nearly 20,000 migrants illegally cross the border in just one week. 

Eagle Pass, Texas, has also bore the brunt of the crisis, leading billionaire Elon Musk to visit the town in September. 

Musk was toured around the stricken camps by Republican Congressman Tony Gonzales, an outspoken critic of Biden’s border policies. After December’s record setting crossings, he said the crisis is ‘historic.’ 

‘Yet, more people are coming. And there’s more people in the pipeline,’ he said last week. 

‘Our entire southern border is being dismantled by the cartels. While mass migrant caravans pull CBP personnel off the front lines, multiple Border Patrol checkpoints have been shut down–allowing contraband and criminals to flow in without resistance,’ Gonzales said in a statement. 

‘Trade is slowly coming to a standstill, and our law enforcement officers are exhausted ahead of a demoralizing holiday season that will keep them working overtime. If there were ever a time to sound the alarm, this would be it.

‘For the sake of our national security, Washington must put politics aside and deliver on policy solutions that fix this border crisis once and for all.’ 

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