US detention of asylum seekers ‘inhumane and wasteful’: Report

DHS's mass jailing of asylum seekers is the result of Biden administration policy that designates people who cross the border, including asylum seekers, as a “threat to border security” and a priority for enforcement [File: Jose Luis Gonzalez/Reuters]

Washington, DC – The Biden administration has imprisoned tens of thousands of asylum seekers in violation of United States and international law, a rights group has said in a new report, just weeks before large numbers of people are expected to arrive at the country’s southern border.

In a report published on Thursday, Human Rights First said that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has held tens of thousands of people in jails instead of allowing them to live in the US with their families or sponsors as their asylum cases are decided.