Migrants from Mexico heading toward the US in search of asylum. (File Photo by AFP)

El Paso, January 26 (RHC)-- Almost 180,000 migrants attempting to cross the border from Mexico were detained by the U.S. border authorities in December, according to official figures, bringing the total number of detentions at the U.S. southern border in 2021 to a record of nearly two million. 

Illegal immigration to the United States, which had nosedived since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, has soared again, especially in the first year of the Joe Biden administration.  
The flow of migrants peaked in July with around 213,000 crossings, and then declined for three following months.  November again saw the surge in border crossings, at 173,620 individuals. 

Biden had promised a more humane approach toward undocumented migrants during his election campaign, while criticizing his predecessor Donald Trump’s migration policy.  His arrival to the White House saw a wave of migrants seeking asylum at the southern border.  However, with the passage of time, his policy has turned out to be no different from his predecessor, The Donald.

Biden has continued Trump’s pandemic-related border restrictions, known as the Title 42 policy.  Under this policy, the US government is allowed to expel any number of immigrants without giving them access to apply for asylum in the country.