Mexican protesters have shut a US southern border crossing amid fears that untested American travellers will spread coronavirus.
Residents in Sonora, south of the US state of Arizona, have promised to block traffic into Mexico for a second day after closing a checkpoint for hours on Wednesday.
They wore face masks and held signs telling Americans to “stay at home”.
Mexico has fewer than 500 confirmed Covid-19 cases and the US over 65,000.
The border is supposed to be closed to all except “essential” business, but protesters said there has been little enforcement and no testing by authorities.
The blockade was led by members of the group Sonorans for Health and Life, who called for medical testing to be done on anyone who crosses from the US into Mexico.
Secret Service officers shoot armed individual near White House
Palisades Fire suspect was allegedly ‘fixated’ on Luigi Mangione and held ‘resentment of the rich’: court docs
Jeffries launches New York gerrymander push after redistricting clash with DeSantis
Trump Says Iran Will Be ‘Blown Off the Face of the Earth’ if They Fire on US Boats in Strait of Hormuz
Disgraced Dem cut off from doing business with government after alleged ‘outright fraud’ uncovered
Three Dead, Others Sickened in Outbreak of Rare Disease Aboard Cruise Ship
Ceasefire threatened as Iran launches waves of missiles and drones at UAE
Judge rants that Jan. 6 inmates were treated better than alleged WHCA dinner gunman
Convicted Somali scammer to avoid jail time in Minnesota’s largest-ever Medicaid fraud case
House minority leader mocks Trump with ‘Jeffries Derangement Syndrome’ jab
Schumer, Dems launch ‘free and fair’ elections task force as Trump’s SAVE America Act stumbles
FBI arrests leftist Senate hopeful for alleged death threats against Trump, Congress member and daughter
Iran Responds to Trump’s New Strait of Hormuz Plan with Aggressive Threat
Rideshare passenger held hostage for eight hours during armed standoff with police in swanky neighborhood
Breaking: ‘Project Freedom’ Leads to Immediate US Success in Strait of Hormuz
Jose Luis Hernandez, a group member, told the Arizona Republic: “There are no health screenings by the federal government to deal with this pandemic. That’s why we’re here in Nogales. We’ve taken this action to call on the Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador to act now.”
The Mexican president has been criticised for his response to the pandemic, as has US President Donald Trump.
Mr Hernandez said the Wednesday demonstrations were a “first warning” to Mr Lopez Obrador, popularly known by his initials, Amlo.
The group has called for enforcement of the crossing ban on all US or Mexican citizens for tourism or medical reasons, including those who cross the border every day to attend school or work in the US.
Authorities must also conduct medical testing on Mexicans deported from the US, they said.
Secret Service officers shoot armed individual near White House
Palisades Fire suspect was allegedly ‘fixated’ on Luigi Mangione and held ‘resentment of the rich’: court docs
Jeffries launches New York gerrymander push after redistricting clash with DeSantis
Trump Says Iran Will Be ‘Blown Off the Face of the Earth’ if They Fire on US Boats in Strait of Hormuz
Disgraced Dem cut off from doing business with government after alleged ‘outright fraud’ uncovered
Three Dead, Others Sickened in Outbreak of Rare Disease Aboard Cruise Ship
Ceasefire threatened as Iran launches waves of missiles and drones at UAE
Judge rants that Jan. 6 inmates were treated better than alleged WHCA dinner gunman
Convicted Somali scammer to avoid jail time in Minnesota’s largest-ever Medicaid fraud case
House minority leader mocks Trump with ‘Jeffries Derangement Syndrome’ jab
Schumer, Dems launch ‘free and fair’ elections task force as Trump’s SAVE America Act stumbles
FBI arrests leftist Senate hopeful for alleged death threats against Trump, Congress member and daughter
Iran Responds to Trump’s New Strait of Hormuz Plan with Aggressive Threat
Rideshare passenger held hostage for eight hours during armed standoff with police in swanky neighborhood
Breaking: ‘Project Freedom’ Leads to Immediate US Success in Strait of Hormuz
The group have vowed to block the DeConcini checkpoint again after shutting it down on Wednesday afternoon.
President Trump has made cutting the number of people crossing the border from Mexico into the US a centrepiece of his administration. He blames border-crossers from the south for bringing economic and social problems into the US.
He announced last week that the frontier was to close due to coronavirus.
Story cited here.
