Mexica­n leader agrees to crack down undocu­mented migrat­ion, deploy­s Nation­al Guards­men to tighte­n its border­sCELAYA: Mexican authorities on Friday rescued 24 Central American migrants, including nine children, who had been held hostage for nearly three weeks in the crime-ridden state of Guanajuato, officials said. The migrants were held for 20 days in the town of Celaya, about 210 kilometres (130 miles) from Mexico City, said Secretary of State Security Juan Jose Gonzalez. They told officials that their relatives had been making payments to their captors during that time, Gonzalez said. Separately, the security ministry announced the arrest of 59 migrants, including 55 Hondurans, around the northeastern town of Saltillo, near the US border. The migrants are frequent targets for violent criminal gangs operating in Mexico, where more than 40,000 people have been officially reported missing.

Source: The Express Tribune July 06, 2019 08:26 UTC