Indians among over 100 people apprehended in US

New York, Aug 14: Over 100 people, including some Indians, have been detained by the US border patrol and immigration officials in separate enforcement actions for illegally entering and living in the country.

Federal Officers from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) arrested 45 people in the Houston area for violating US immigration laws during a five-day enforcement action.

The agency did not give the total number of Indian nationals arrested during the operation.

Individuals arrested during this operation included nationals from Honduras, El Salvador, Mexico, Guatemala, Argentina, Cuba, Nigeria, India, Chile and Turkey, ICE said in a statement.

The local enforcement operation targeted at-large criminal aliens, many of whom had absconded from prior immigration proceedings, it said.

The agency said some of the individuals arrested during the operation will face federal criminal prosecution for illegal entry and illegal re-entry after deportation.

Arrestees who are not being federally prosecuted, will be detained in ICE custody and administratively processed for removal from the US, it said.

In a separate action, US Border Patrol agents discovered 78 illegal aliens inside a locked refrigerated trailer at a checkpoint in Texas last week.

The illegal aliens were found in good health and identified as being from the countries of Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Brazil, Ecuador, India and Dominican Republic.

"These criminal organizations continue to use tractor trailers and view these individuals as mere commodities without regard for their safety.

"The blatant disregard for human life will not be tolerated. We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to disrupt and dismantle these organizations and prosecute those responsible," said Laredo Sector, Acting Chief Patrol Agent Jason Owens.

Earlier, nearly 100 Indians, mostly from Punjab, were detained at two immigration detention centres for illegally entering the US through its southern border.

President Donald Trump had reversed his controversial decision on immigration by signing an executive order to end the separation of immigrant families on the US-Mexico border, following widespread protests against the move of his administration to separate children from their parents who illegally enter the country.

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US braces for historic showdown: Harris vs. Trump in razor-tight presidential clash

News Network

November 5,2024

Washington: The race between Democratic leader Kamala Harris and her Republican rival Donald Trump for the White House has been truly unprecedented as it saw drama, tragedy, political comebacks, fierce rhetoric and a historically razor-tight contest.

As the fight reaches its crescendo with the big election day just a few hours away, many political observers billed the unpredictable race for the 47th President of the US as the most consequential one in decades while appearing to project a grim picture for the country’s future under a Trump presidency.

In her final days of campaign, Vice President Harris focused on a message of hope, unity, optimism and women rights whereas Trump remained fiercely combative in targeting his Democratic rival and even suggested that he may not accept the election outcome in case of a defeat.

Overall, it has been a roller-coaster ride for both 60-year-old Harris and 78-year-old Trump.

Trump received his party’s nomination in March and formally at the Republican National Convention (RNC) in July — in a historic comeback after remaining in political wilderness for months following several court cases.

In effect, he became the first former president to get the nomination for the top office on the planet after being convicted of a felony.

“Trump has made one of the biggest political comebacks since Richard Nixon’s in terms of the political struggles that he has had in the last four years,” Communication Strategist Anang Mittal said.

Just days ahead of the RNC, Trump was shot at during a rally in Pennsylvania. He suffered an upper ear injury. Minutes later, a bleeding Trump raised his fist in defiance, images that drew a lot of emotional support from his die-hard supporters.

For Harris too, it has been a dramatic ride after Biden ended his re-election campaign in July, nearly weeks after he came under severe scrutiny following his incoherent performance at a televised debate with Trump.

While dropping out from the race, Biden, 81, endorsed Harris to succeed him as the Democratic candidate.

Finally in August, the Democratic National Convention formally nominated Harris as the party’s candidate for the presidential election.

The presidential election will be a chance to “move past the bitterness, cynicism and divisive battles of the past”, she said in a powerful speech at the Convention.

If Harris wins, she will become the first woman, first Black woman and first person of South Asian descent to become the US President.

In the overall campaign, Harris has been projecting the election as the one to protect the country’s fundamental freedoms, safeguard constitutional values and ensure women’s rights.

On his part, Trump has maintained his signature aggressive rhetoric and promising to rebuild the economy and rid the US from illegal immigrants.

However, there has been strong criticism of the Republican leader’s roadmap to repair the economy.

"Donald Trump is offering a vision of crony rentier capitalism that has enticed many captains of industry and finance,” said Joseph E Stiglitz, a Nobel laureate economist, in a column in Project Syndicate.

"In catering to their wishes for more tax cuts and less regulation, he would make most Americans’ lives poorer, harder, and shorter,” he said.

With election day just a few hours away, there is no clarity on who has a better chance of winning the race.

"The elections are very close. They (the outcome) may change on the basis of a few thousands votes here or there. I think the big issue will be voter turnout tomorrow. That will determine the outcome in certain swing states,” said Executive Director of the US chapter of Observer Research Foundation Dhruva Jaishankar.

Kapil Sharma, a non-resident senior fellow at Atlantic Council’s Middle East Programmes, also echoed similar views.

“This election is probably one of the closest elections that I can remember. I have been working in Washington for over 30 years and I don’t recall an election being this tight,” he said.

More than 78 million Americans have already cast their votes as of Sunday, according to the University of Florida’s Election Lab that tracks early and mail-in voting across the US.

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