Mexican authorities have started building massive tent shelters in Ciudad Juarez to prepare for a potential wave of deported citizens following U.S. President Donald Trump’s plans for mass deportations.
The temporary shelters in Ciudad Juarez are designed to accommodate thousands of people and are expected to be operational within days, according to municipal official Enrique Licon.
“This is unprecedented,” Licon said on Tuesday, as workers unloaded large metal bracings from trucks near an empty lot by the Rio Grande, the river separating Ciudad Juarez from El Paso, Texas.
These shelters are part of a broader Mexican government initiative to establish reception centers and shelters in nine cities along the northern border.
Deported individuals will receive food, temporary housing, medical services, and assistance in obtaining identification documents, as outlined in the government’s strategy called “Mexico Embraces You.”
Additionally, plans include deploying a fleet of buses to help transport deported citizens from the reception centers back to their hometowns.
Trump has pledged to implement the largest deportation operation in U.S. history, targeting millions of immigrants. However, such an effort would likely take years and come with a significant financial burden.
According to an analysis by the Mexican think tank El Colegio de la Frontera Norte (COLEF), nearly 5 million Mexicans currently live in the United States without legal authorization, based on recent U.S. census data.
While the Mexican government claims to be prepared for mass deportations, immigration advocates remain concerned. They fear that a combination of large-scale deportations and Trump’s stricter border control measures could overwhelm Mexican border cities.
Reported by Reuters
