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Companies Chevron Corp FollowHOUSTON, Dec 30 (Reuters) - U.S. oil company Chevron Corp (CVX.N) is sending two oil tankers to Venezuela, one of which will load the first cargo of crude destined for the United States in nearly four years, according to a person familiar with the matter and shipping data. On Friday, a Chevron-chartered vessel approached the South American country's waters to pick up a cargo of Venezuelan crude. A second tanker carrying a cargo of diluents to a Chevron oil joint venture is due to arrive in the country early next month, the person said. The U.S. last month issued a 6-month license to Chevron authorizing it to take an expanded role at four Venezuelan oil joint ventures that produce, process and export oil, and to bring their oil to the United States. Washington officials have said further easing of Venezuelan oil sanctions could come with a reinstatement of excluded political candidates and election observers.

☆ U.S. ramps up immigration arrests mostly at Mexican border
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-30 | by ( Mica Rosenberg | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

NEW YORK, Dec 30 (Reuters) - Immigration arrests nearly doubled in 2022 compared to 2021 as border authorities apprehended more migrants and courts blocked efforts by U.S. President Joe Biden to more narrowly target detentions to focus on serious criminals. Around two-thirds of those arrests were of people with only immigration violations, the data showed. Most were migrants apprehended at the U.S.-Mexico border with no criminal convictions or charges pending and who were transferred to ICE, officials said on a call with reporters. U.S. Border Patrol agents apprehended a record 2.2 million migrants at the southwest border in the 2022 fiscal year. Those not expelled are either released into the country to pursue immigration claims or detained by ICE.

☆ Thriving network of fixers preys on migrants crossing Mexico
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-29 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +23 min

With soaring numbers of people entering Mexico, a sprawling network of lawyers, fixers and middlemen has exploded in the country. Detained migrants stand in the outdoor area of the Siglo XXI Migrant Detention Center in Tapachula, Mexico, on Oct. 4. When the immigration agency was asked directly, via freedom of information requests, it said it was just one. An empanada vendor's stall advertises information, and immigration documents outside the main immigration office in Puebla, Mexico, on Sept. 23. By mid-December, the immigration agency suddenly announced the closing of the camp with no explanation.

Frosty diplomatic relations between the United States and the governments of Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela have complicated deportations to those countries. The new rules for Cubans, Nicaraguans and Haitians would be modeled on an existing program for Venezuelans launched in October. Mexico has only accepted the expulsion of some nationalities, mostly Mexicans and Central Americans, under Title 42. Two officials said the policy shift for Cubans, Haitians and Nicaraguans could come as soon as this week. Close to half of those arrested were rapidly expelled under the Title 42 policy.

[1/3] Migrants run to hide from the U.S. Border Patrol and Texas State Troopers after crossing into the United States from Mexico, in El Paso, Texas, U.S., December 23, 2022. On Tuesday, the U.S. Supreme Court granted a request by a group of Republican state attorneys general to put on hold a judge's decision invalidating Title 42. The court said it would hear arguments on whether the states could intervene to defend Title 42 during its February session. "If they don't end Title 42," he said, "we're going to keep entering illegally." Elsewhere along the border, other migrants said they felt they had run out of options.

☆ Migrants dropped outside VP Harris's home on blustery Christmas Eve
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Dec 25 (Reuters) - Busloads of migrants were dropped over Christmas weekend near Vice President Kamala Harris' residence in Washington amid freezing temperatures, having traveled from the southwest border in Texas, immigrant aid groups said on Sunday. Aides to Texas Governor Greg Abbott were not available to comment on whether the state coordinated their transportation. U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris participates in a working lunch on multilateral cooperation during the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit, in Washington, U.S., December 15, 2022. REUTERS/Evelyn HocksteinThe Republican governor, a vocal critic of the Biden administration's immigration policies, and some other Republican governors have been transporting migrants to Democratic-controlled cities in the northern United States. Laborde said that in the past week, nine busloads of migrants have been dropped off in Washington.

☆ Venezuela's working-class communities get together to eat Christmas 'hallacas'
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] Children eat "Hallacas", a local traditional Christmas dish, during a Christmas activity organised by the NGO "Mi Convive" and the foundation "People who need love" in the neighbourhood of "El Cementerio", in Caracas, Venezuela, December 21, 2022. REUTERS/Gaby OraaCARACAS, Dec 23 (Reuters) - Residents in working-class neighborhoods of Venezuela's capital city of Caracas are coming together to break bread over "hallacas," a dish commonly served around Christmas, as part of an initiative to unite communities depleted by migration. The neighborhoods' smallest residents noshed on hallacas, leaving their faces caked in the crumbs. During the meal, residents busted out the drums and tambourines to sing "gaitas," or seasonal songs characterized by Venezuela's mixed heritage, and "aguinaldos" - similar to Christmas carols. So this Christmas dish is our connection to that family abroad," she said.

REYNOSA, Mexico — As court fights persist over what laws to use to deal with migrants arriving at the border, thousands have been camping in Mexico awaiting a chance to enter the United States. Migrants are sleeping in tents set up by Ministerio Senda de Vida, a faith-based group, in two camps in Reynosa, Mexico, across the border from McAllen, Texas. But because it has no penalties for making multiple attempts to cross, as Title 8 does, the recidivism rate has grown. But migrants waited in dropping temperatures Thursday at spots without the wire along the border for a chance to pass border barriers and request asylum. Morgan Chesky and Kayla McCormick reported from Reynosa, Mexico and Suzanne Gamboa from San Antonio.

[1/6] Migrants queue near the border fence, after crossing the Rio Bravo river, to turn themselves in to U.S. Border Patrol agents and request asylum in El Paso, Texas, U.S., as seen from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico December 21, 2022. Watching migrants trickle past gates into the United States, several Venezuelans lamented the last-minute move. Title 42 allows U.S. authorities to send migrants of certain nationalities, including Venezuelans, back to Mexico without a chance to seek asylum. Migrants in other border cities face a similar quandary. With temperatures forecast to chill further, he worries that those anxious to reach the United States will risk their lives crossing the river.

CARACAS, Dec 21 (Reuters) - Venezuelan opposition parties are seeking to remove Juan Guaido as head of Citgo, the country's most important asset abroad, and block his interim government from extending its mandate by another year, spokespeople from the country's main opposition parties said on Wednesday. But opposition political parties propose instead to replace Guaido with a commission of five parliament-appointed members to govern Citgo's assets, and block the one-year extension. Parties looking to replace Guaido have proposed delegating the functions of the interim government to the new commission. Three of Venezuela's largest opposition parties support the motion, Marquina said, while the fourth - which Guaido belongs to - supports the interim government. Guaido's failure to extend his leadership may spell trouble for the boards controlling those assets, whose legitimacy rests on the recognition of Guaido as Venezuela's interim leader.

☆ Second migrant this year dies by suicide in New York City shelter, officials say
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( Julianne Mcshane | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

A second migrant died by suicide in a New York City shelter last week, according to officials and NBC New York. "These families are coming to New York City after a months-long harrowing journey, in some cases, still reeling from the trauma they experienced along the way," the spokesperson said. A bus carrying migrants arrives into the Port Authority bus station in New York City in Aug. 2022. Spencer Platt / Getty Images fileThousands of migrants have arrived in New York City by bus from out-of-state since the spring. Several migrants told NBC News they have struggled to find work and build their lives upon arriving in New York.

U.S. President Joe Biden, a Democrat, had campaigned on overturning Trump's hardline immigration measures before taking office in 2021 but kept Title 42 in place for more than a year. A federal judge last month ruled Title 42 was unlawful in response to a lawsuit originally brought by asylum-seeking migrants represented by the American Civil Liberties Union. Hours later, Chief Justice John Roberts in a brief order issued a stay that will leave Title 42 in place until further notice from the court. DHS last week updated a six-pillar plan that calls for the expanded use of a fast-track deportation process if Title 42 is terminated. In El Paso, shelters have struggled to provide for arriving migrants even as many ultimately are headed to join relatives in other parts of the United States.

EL PASO, Texas — The state of Texas deployed the National Guard to El Paso on Monday, a few hours before the Supreme Court paused attempts to lift a law that allows for migrants to be quickly expelled from the country. "We are seeing breaking news that Title 42 may not be lifted. The Covid-era law that has been governing the border since March 2020, known as Title 42, was set to expire Wednesday. Late Monday, Chief Justice John Roberts placed a temporary hold on a lower court ruling to end use of Title 42. The news about the possible ending of Title 42 was being passed among migrants, he said.

REUTERS/Jordan VonderhaarWASHINGTON/CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico, Dec 19 (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday said COVID-era restrictions at the U.S.-Mexico border that have prevented hundreds of thousands of migrants from seeking asylum should be kept in place for now, siding with Republicans who brought a legal challenge. U.S. President Joe Biden, a Democrat, had campaigned on overturning Trump's hardline immigration measures before taking office in 2021 but kept Title 42 in place for more than a year. A federal judge last month ruled Title 42 was unlawful in response to a lawsuit originally by asylum-seeking migrants represented by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). Hours later, Chief Justice John Roberts in a brief order issued a stay that will leave Title 42 in place until further notice from the court. In El Paso, shelters have struggled to house newcomers even as many ultimately are headed to join relatives in other parts of the United States.

REUTERS/Jesus HernandezEL TOCUYO, Venezuela, Dec 20 (Reuters) - Julio Perez, a 38-year-old auto mechanic, sold his car and tools to make the dangerous journey from Venezuela to the United States. But like many migrants in the two months since the United States changed its immigration policy, he opted to board a plane back to Venezuela. Sandoval trekked through muddy pathways and waste-high rivers, only to find out the news of the Title 42 policy after emerging. "To be told this news was really, really awful after everything I experienced there in the jungle," Sandoval said. Like Sandoval, Perez - who says he would never attempt to cross the Darien again - is still haunted by his journey of broken dreams.

They had traveled there in anticipation that the COVID-19 restrictions, known as Title 42, would be lifted on Wednesday as ordered by a U.S. court. Title 42 allows U.S. authorities to rapidly expel migrants to Mexico and other countries without a chance to seek U.S. asylum. But in an last-minute move, the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday allowed Title 42 to remain in place temporarily while a Republican legal challenge seeking to extend the measures is decided. Under Title 42, the United States typically can only expel migrants from Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Venezuela to Mexico. Title 42 was originally issued in March 2020 under Republican former President Donald Trump at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The temporary order from the nation's highest court means Title 42 will stay in place until further notice from the court. Title 42, aimed at slowing the spread of COVID-19, was issued in March 2020 under Republican former President Donald Trump, an immigration restrictionist. Jean-Pierre stressed that migrants entering illegally could still be removed via other means even if eventually Title 42 goes away. "Truly, I am asking from my heart for the opportunity to enter" the United States. In El Paso, shelters have struggled to house newcomers even as many ultimately are headed to join relatives in other parts of the United States.

[1/5] A Texas National Guardsman watches as a group of migrants wades across the Rio Grande as U.S. border cities brace for an influx of asylum seekers when COVID-era Title 42 migration restrictions are set to end, in Eagle Pass, Texas, U.S. December 18, 2022. But because of an ongoing legal battle, it remains unclear whether Title 42 will end on Wednesday. For months, El Paso has been receiving large groups of asylum-seeking migrants, including many Nicaraguans who cannot be expelled to Mexico. On Saturday, the city's mayor declared a state of emergency to move migrants from city streets as temperatures have dropped below freezing. In El Paso, shelters have struggled to house incoming migrants, straining limited resources that are already accommodating the local homeless population.

[1/2] Hundreds of migrants, mostly from Nicaragua, are released by U.S. Customs and Border Protection near a bus station in downtown El Paso, Texas, U.S. December 13, 2022. REUTERS/Ivan Pierre AguirreDec 17 (Reuters) - The mayor of the Texas border city of El Paso declared a state of emergency on Saturday, citing the hundreds of migrants sleeping on the streets in cold temperatures and the thousands being apprehended every day. Mayor Oscar Leeser, a Democrat, said the emergency declaration would give city authorities the resources and ability to shelter migrants who have crossed the Mexican border. The move comes as El Paso, a Democratic stronghold with a history of welcoming immigrants, has struggled in recent months to deal with tens of thousands of migrants crossing the border with Mexico. Even as government officials move migrants in El Paso to other U.S. cities, local shelters are beyond capacity and migrants have been sleeping on the streets as temperatures dip below freezing.

Title 42 is a part of U.S. law that deals with public health, social welfare and civil rights. Bottom line, a federal judge ordered the Biden administration to stop using Title 42 by Dec. 21, stating that it was "arbitrary and capricious." The administration had tried to stop using Title 42 sooner, but was blocked by a federal court in Louisiana. Why is using Title 42 controversial? So if we're still using Title 42, why are so many people illegally crossing the border now?

☆ Biden administration warns of potential influx of migrants immediately after Title 42 ends
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Priscilla Alvarez | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Administration officials have been bracing for an influx of migrants when a public health authority, known as Title 42, ends next week. In September, Venezuelans, Cubans and Nicaraguans accounted for almost half of encounters along the US southern border, according to the Department of Homeland Security. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas underscored the whole of government approach in a statement, noting that mass movement of people around the globe has posed a uniquely difficult challenge. In October, the administration rolled out a humanitarian parole program geared toward Venezuelans to encourage them to apply for entry into the United States instead of crossing unlawfully. But the calculus of migrants may change when Title 42 lifts, the memo says.

☆ Border crossings are already near record highs, and the end of a Covid ban this month could bring still more
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Julia-Ainsley-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Julia Ainsley | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

Despite new restrictions on asylum-seekers, daily migrant crossings at the U.S.-Mexico border have remained near record highs, say three sources familiar with the latest numbers, as the Biden administration braces for a possible extra surge of thousands more per day when Covid restrictions end this month. Policymakers in Washington, as well as officials at the southern border, have long predicted a surge in migrants when the policy is lifted. In October, the U.S. began using Title 42 to turn away Venezuelan border crossers, whose numbers were soaring. When Title 42 lifts, migrants of all nationalities will be able to come into the U.S. to make asylum claims, just as they did before the Covid-19 pandemic. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas has previously detailed plans for lifting Title 42 that would allow for a faster asylum process that would move to quickly deport those who do not qualify.

☆ Longtime Caracas bakeries enjoy sweet benefits of dollarization
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Mayela Armas | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

CARACAS, Dec 1 (Reuters) - After years of struggle, veteran bakeries in Venezuela's capital Caracas are cooking up a variety of delectables, in the latest sign that the country's slight economic boost is reviving some family-owned small businesses. Dollarization meant freedom from the troughs and peaks of Venezuela's local currency, extra dough for spending in some sectors, and greater ease for importing certain ingredients, like wheat flour. Processing and distribution of wheat flour was under state control for years and supplies were intermittent, leading to lower production, while Venezuelans saw bread rationed. Venezuela imports wheat flour for processing. Despite the county's economic improvement, low salaries remain a hurdle for bakeries looking to grow.

☆ Colombia wants Biden admin. to grant temporary legal status to its citizens in U.S.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

BOGOTA, Colombia — Colombia wants the Biden administration to grant temporary legal status to its citizens now living in the United States, noting its own efforts to address regional migration by hosting 2 million Venezuelans who fled their homes. In a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, he asks President Joe Biden to grant Colombians already in the U.S. a form of temporary status called Deferred Enforced Departure. It is unclear how many Colombians are living in the United States without legal status. Murillo Urritia said there are nearly 2 million Colombians living in the United States, without elaborating on their immigration status. The Biden administration has extended temporary status for some countries and added Afghanistan, Ukraine, Myanmar, Cameroon and Venezuela, reversing a Trump-era trend to cut back on protections for those already in the United States.

The United States on Saturday granted Chevron a six-month license to operate in Venezuela, reinstating oil trading privileges it had, while preventing exchanges of cash and requiring the crude cargoes go to U.S. refiners. Executives at Venezuelan state firm PDVSA initially welcomed the authorization for a partial return to the United States, once the country's most important market. In addition, European oil companies Eni (ENI.MI) and Repsol won U.S. approvals to take Venezuelan crude for debt repayment. Chevron's Venezuelan oil cargoes face potential seizures by creditors that have arbitration claims and court judgments, said trading experts and lawyers. Washington placed tight reins on the oil imports to win support from a Congress skeptical of deals with Maduro.

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