Border Crossings Decrease After Title 42 Expires, But Challenges Remain

The number of unauthorized entries along the southern border has dropped to an average of 4,400 per day after soaring to 10,000 last week ahead of the expiration of Title 42 border restrictions, a senior U.S. official said Wednesday, attributing the sharp drop to increased deportations, tighter asylum rules and efforts by other countries to stop U.S.-bound migrants. The Biden administration has increased regular deportations and returns to migrants' home countries and Mexico, which recently agreed to accept Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans turned back by the U.S.