Texas governor authorizes state police to return migrants to border

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Texas governor signed an order on Thursday permitting state law enforcement to detain migrants who have crossed the border from Mexico, defying the federal government's traditional authority over US immigration affairs.

"The state of Texas is once again stepping up and taking unprecedented action to protect Americans and secure the southern border," Republican Governor Greg Abbott said in a statement.

According to the statement, the executive order authorizes the Texas National Guard and the Texas Department of Safety to "apprehend illegal immigrants who illegally cross the border between ports of entry and return them to the border."

Abbott has frequently chastised Democrats in Washington for purportedly being soft on immigration, and claimed on Thursday that the bill was necessary because US President Joe Biden "refuses to do his job and enforce the immigration laws enacted by Congress."

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The decision creates the possibility of a legal battle between Texas and the federal government, which is in charge of immigration and international relations laws, however, it is unknown how the order will be enforced so far.

An AFP request for comment was not immediately responded to by the Department of Homeland Security.

Meanwhile, the Mexican government rejected the decision, stating that the country will only negotiate immigration policy at the federal level, which is also the typical practice in the United States.

"Therefore, this action can only be understood as part of the electoral campaign in the state of Texas," the Mexican government said in a statement Thursday night, referring to upcoming November polls that include the race for governor.

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In recent months, the number of Mexicans migrating to the United States has remained high. Authorities apprehended over 239,000 people on the Mexican border in May, a record, however, this figure includes those who attempted to enter the US many times.

Abbott's action also comes just a week after the US Supreme Court handed Biden's administration the go-ahead to discontinue the so-called Remain in Mexico policy, which former President Donald Trump implemented in 2019.

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Instead of being imprisoned or provisionally released, the program sent those non-Mexicans who entered the US illegally back over the southern border to wait while their immigration cases were heard in court.

A group of Republican-led states, led by Texas, contested Biden's attempt to end the policy.

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Migrants crossing into the United States from Mexico, many of whom have come from Central America, face a difficult and often deadly journey that can include harsh environmental conditions and the potential of mistreatment by human traffickers.

Just last week, 53 people perished after being trapped in an abandoned tractor-trailer vehicle without air conditioning in San Antonio, Texas.