US expands area in Mexico to apply for border asylum appointments, hoping to slow push north

Associated Press

CIUDAD HIDALGO, Mexico (AP) — The CBP One app has been around, but as of Friday migrants in Mexico’s southernmost states bordering Guatemala will be able to apply for appointments to seek U.S. asylum. Previously, they had to be in central or northern Mexico. Mexico has been asking the U.S. to expand the app’s access to the south in an attempt to relieve the pressure migrants feel to continue north to at least Mexico City. In recent years, the Mexican government has tried to contain migrants in the south farther from the U.S. border, but the lack of work opportunities and housing in southern cities like Tapachula have pushed migrants north.