US immigration to close holding area under El Paso bridge

EL PASO, Texas – U.S. immigration officials say they will close a holding area under a bridge connecting El Paso, Texas, with Juarez, Mexico, that is just a short distance from where a senior official declared an “operational crisis” at the border last week.

In a statement Sunday, Customs and Border Protection says that migrants being held under the Paso Del Norte International Bridge will be relocated to a place with more space and shelter.

The holding area is a few hundred yards from where Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Kevin McAleenan Wednesday announced that 750 border inspectors will be reassigned to cope with an influx of families from Central American seeking asylum.

The area held hundreds of migrants in a pen lined with concertina wire under the shade of a bridge.