Less Than 300 Asylum Seekers Sent to 'Remain in Mexico'

The Department of Homeland Security reports less than 300 asylum seekers were sent to Mexico after applying for asylum in the United States as part of the Migration Protection Protocols (MPP), or "Remain in Mexico" policy.

A DHS document, which was first obtained by Fox News, shows Customs and Border Protection "enrolled 267 individuals in MPP during December 2021, all of whom were single adults. The majority (162, or 61%) were from Nicaragua, followed by Venezuela (59, or 22%), Cuba (32, or 12%), Colombia (7, or 3%), and Ecuador (7, or 3%)."

The department noted most of the asylum seekers, 242, or 91%, "made a fear claim and were given" non-refoulement interviews (NRIs) by officers with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. The "NRI fear screening is based on enrollees' fear of return to Mexico, not their fear of return to their home country," according to the DHS report.

"A total of 186 enrollees (78% of NRIs) had negative fear determinations, while 28 enrollees (12% of NRIs) had positive fear determinations and 23 enrollees (10% of NRIs) had NRIs resulting in administrative closures."

The report goes on to state, "A total of 191 individuals enrolled in MPP (72%) in December 2021 were returned to Mexico as of January 11, 2022, while 76 (28%) were disenrolled.

"Among the 78 persons disenrolled, 27 had received positive fear determinations, 27 had received negative fear determinations, and 22 had administrative closures. A total of 186 people received negative fear findings, and of these 159 enrollees (85%) were returned to Mexico, while 27 enrollees (15%) were disenrolled due to particular vulnerabilities."

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