The Mexican government strongly opposed the intensified immigration crackdown by the United States. The president publicly stated that ‘innocent citizens were detained in large numbers’ to pressure the Trump administration.
President Claudia Sheinbaum confirmed on the 8th (local time) that 35 individuals from Mexico were arrested during a recent crackdown on illegal immigrants conducted by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in the Los Angeles (LA) area.
Sheinbaum said, ‘Mexican nationals residing in the United States are good-natured men and women,’ and added that they are ‘diligent people who migrated to the U.S. in pursuit of better lives and to support their families.’
She continued, ‘They are certainly not criminals. They are wonderful men and women,’ countering the immigration policies of the Trump administration.
In concluding her speech, President Sheinbaum urged the audience to ‘support the arrested Mexicans.’
Since the 6th, ICE agents, along with U.S. Department of Homeland Security investigators, have launched a large-scale crackdown on illegal immigrants in LA. On the morning of the 6th, ICE agents began by raiding the Home Depot, a large retail store near LA’s Koreatown, and quickly moved to major residential areas for illegal immigrants like Paramount and Compton.
Bloomberg reported that federal immigration authorities arrested an average of 2,000 illegal immigrants per day across the U.S. this week. In the LA area alone, 118 were detained in one day.
The Washington Post (WP) raised the possibility that this situation could lead to diplomatic conflicts between Mexico and the United States. Analysis suggests that the Trump administration’s hardline immigration policies are creating rifts in relations with neighboring countries.
The Mexican government announced that it is in contact with the families of those detained at the level of local consulates.
The Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs also added that it has expanded support for Mexican immigrants in the United States. They are strengthening activities to inform individuals of their legal rights in case of arrest by immigration authorities.
A Mexican government official stated, ‘We respectfully and firmly demand that U.S. authorities conduct all immigration-related processes in accordance with legal procedures and respect human rights and the rule of law.’