The kidnappers of 32 migrants rescued this Wednesday in northern Mexico They sought to extort their relatives living in the United Statesstated this Thursday the Mexican president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
(Also read: They rescue the 31 migrants kidnapped on the northern border of Mexico).
The objective of the kidnapping, which occurred on Saturday, was the “extortion” of “relatives in the United States,” the president noted in his usual morning conference.
The 26 Venezuelans and six Hondurans, including nine minors, were traveling on a bus on a highway near the border with the United States. when they were intercepted by armed and hooded men.
Andrés Manuel López Obrador, president of Mexico.
The drivers, who were immediately released by the kidnappers along with other Mexican passengers, They reported what happened and on Saturday the search operation began, in which the police and the armed forces participated.
Given the deployment of officers by land and air, The kidnappers “decided to let them free,” the president added. “It is an investigation that continues, For now, let's celebrate that they appeared alive” and “safe and sound,” López Obrador continued. when questioned about the lack of detainees.
(Keep reading: What is known about four Colombians kidnapped in Mexico: there is a minor).
The authorities had initially reported that there were 31 kidnapped passengers, because there was an unregistered baby among them.
With more than 3,000 km of border with the United States, Mexico is a transit and retention country for migrants, mainly from Central American countries plagued by violence or poverty (Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador), the Caribbean (Haiti, Cuba) or Venezuela, which clash with the restrictive policies of the United States.
Caravan of migrants advancing towards the border with the United States.
Migrations to the United States reached a record number last year. According to the US border patrol, between October 2022 and September 2023, 2.4 million migrant entries were registered along the southern border of the United States, a record.
(We recommend: Caravan of thousands of migrants stops and surrenders to Mexican authorities).
The border of the United States and Mexico was the “most dangerous land migratory route in the world” in 2022, with 686 dead or missingaccording to a report by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) published in September.
AFP
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