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Thousands of migrants have been moving slowly north through Mexico towards the US, ahead of talks between the two countries over the illegal migration crisis at the border.

Pictures on Christmas Day showed a long line of people, some carrying placards and banners, children amongst them, setting out from Tapachula, in the far southeast of Mexico.

Around 8,000 migrants from Central America, Venezuela, Cuba and other countries – many of them families with young children – are estimated to be walking towards the US, organisers told Telemundo, an American-Spanish language news channel owned by NBC, Sky News’s US partner network.

Migrants depart from Tapachula, Mexico, Sunday, Dec. 24, 2023. The caravan started the trek north through Mexico just days before U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrives in Mexico City to discuss new agreements to control the surge of migrants seeking entry into the United States. (AP Photo/Edgar H. Clemente)
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Pic: AP

Migrants depart from Tapachula, Mexico, Sunday, Dec. 24, 2023. The caravan started the trek north through Mexico just days before U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrives in Mexico City to discuss new agreements to control the surge of migrants seeking entry into the United States. (AP Photo/Edgar H. Clemente)
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Some carried banners and placards. Pic: AP

The caravan began moving north on Christmas Eve, days before US secretary of state Antony Blinken arrives in Mexico City to discuss new agreements to control the surge of people trying to get into the US.

Mr Blinken and US Homeland Security chief Alejandro Mayorkas are meeting Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on Wednesday.

Pictures showed the migrants spent Christmas night sleeping on scraps of cardboard or plastic, stretched out under awnings, tents or on the bare ground.

“I was used to my Christmas dinner with the family, not spending it in the street as we did yesterday,” Eduviges Arias, a migrant from Venezuela, told the Associated Press.

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Migrants camp in Alvaro Obregon, Mexico, Sunday, Dec. 24, 2023. A caravan or migrants started the trek north from Tapachula on Sunday, just days before U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrives in Mexico City to discuss new agreements to control the surge of migrants seeking entry into the United States. (AP Photo/Edgard H. Clemente)
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Christmas night at a migrant camp in Alvaro Obregon. Pic: AP

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In the past, Mexico has let migrants travel through the country, trusting they would tire themselves out. No migrant caravan has ever walked the 1,000 miles (1,600 kilometres) to the US border.

It comes as the issue of illegal migration into the US from the south reaches crisis point.

A record number of undocumented migrants crossed the border last week, according to US customs officials.

Migrants depart from Tapachula, Mexico, Sunday, Dec. 24, 2023. The caravan started the trek north through Mexico just days before U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrives in Mexico City to discuss new agreements to control the surge of migrants seeking entry into the United States. (AP Photo/Edgar H. Clemente)
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Around 8,000 people are taking part. Pic: AP

At the same time, a record number of migrants were being held in custody in US border facilities, NBC said, quoting three Homeland Security officials.

Mexico says it detected 680,000 migrants moving through the country in the first 11 months of 2023.

The State Department said the talks with its neighbour will focus on the “unprecedented irregular migration in the Western Hemisphere and identify ways Mexico and the United States will address border security challenges”.

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Donald Trump speaking about migration into the US at a rally

Last Thursday, Republican House speaker Mike Johnson sent a letter to President Joe Biden, blaming him for the border crisis and urging him to act “to stem the record tide of illegal immigration”.

Donald Trump, the overwhelming favourite to be the party’s nominee to face Mr Biden in next year’s presidential election, recently said migrants were “poisoning the blood of America” during a rally.

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Sam Jones: US influencer who snatched baby wombat from its mother leaves Australia amid fears for animal’s health

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Sam Jones: US influencer who snatched baby wombat from its mother leaves Australia amid fears for animal's health

An American influencer who caused outrage by snatching a baby wombat from its mother has left Australia – amid concerns the “disorientated” marsupial may not have refound its parent.

Sam Jones, who describes herself as an “outdoor enthusiast and hunter”, left the country on Friday after the Australian government said it was reviewing her visa.

In a now-deleted video to her 92,000 followers on Instagram, recorded at an unknown location, Jones says: “I caught a baby wombat” as a man filming her laughs.

She returns the animal to the roadside after several seconds.

File pic: Tiffany-Jane Pe Than/iStock
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File pic: Tiffany-Jane Pe Than/iStock

Now, there are concerns the baby wombat may have been left to fend for itself – and an animal welfare expert has warned it has a potentially fatal skin disease.

Yolandi Vermaak, founder of animal care charity Wombat Rescue, said separating the youngster from its mother created a risk the parent would reject her offspring.

“My biggest concern is that we didn’t actually see mum and baby getting reunited,” Ms Vermaak said.

“When she put it down, it looked disorientated. It was turned away from where the mother was last seen. So we don’t know if mum and baby actually found each other again.”

Ms Vermaak said Ms Jones should say where she left the wombat after the video showed the joey had a skin disease.

“The baby has mange and it’s a matter of time before it dies of mange, so it’s important for us to find where this happened and to get this baby and its mum treated as soon as possible,” Ms Vermaak said.

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Ms Jones’s actions drew fierce criticism from politicians. Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said she had clearly caused “distress” in the marsupial’s mother and described her behaviour as “just an outrage”.

Home affairs minister Tony Burke, speaking after a government official confirmed Ms Jones had left the country voluntarily, said: “There’s never been a better day to be a baby wombat in Australia.”

Previously, he said he could not wait for “Australia to see the back of this individual”.

The wombat appears to be a common wombat, also known as a bare-nosed wombat. It is found only in Australia and is a protected marsupial.

Ms Jones, who also uses the name Samantha Strable, closed her social media channels to messages and could not be reached for comment on Friday.

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Trump trade war: Tesla warns of ‘disproportionate’ tariff impact

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Trump trade war: Tesla warns of 'disproportionate' tariff impact

Tesla, run by Donald Trump cheerleader Elon Musk, has warned US officials it risks being exposed to “disproportionate” retaliatory tariffs under the president’s escalating trade war.

The electric carmaker raised the issue in a letter to the US Trade Representative’s (USTR’s) Office on the same day Mr Trump bought a Tesla car in a show of support for his close ally after a bloodbath for the company’s shares.

Investor concerns, mostly linked to the trade war, have pushed Tesla’s market value 50% down from its December peak – a hit of roughly £800bn.

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The backlash against the trade war intensified this week when Tesla suffered its worst daily loss in five years as part of broader stock market falls on fears that US consumers and businesses are now facing the prospect of a recession.

The declines at Tesla were also linked by market analysts to domestic anger over Mr Musk‘s work in government to shrink its size through leadership of the so-called Department of Government Efficiency.

Tesla’s letter was one in a growing mailbag, with businesses widely complaining about the threat of rising costs and red tape.

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It was not clear who wrote the Tesla document, as it was unsigned, but it stated it was important to ensure that the Trump
administration’s efforts to address trade issues “do not inadvertently harm US companies”.

Tesla said it wanted to avoid retaliation of the type it faced in prior trade disputes, which resulted in increased
tariffs on electric vehicles imported into countries subject to US tariffs.

Canada and the EU are among nations to have responded with counter measures after US tariffs on all steel and aluminium imports came into effect this week.

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“US exporters are inherently exposed to disproportionate impacts when other countries respond to US trade actions,”
Tesla said in the letter.

“For example, past trade actions by the United States have resulted in immediate reactions by the targeted countries, including increased tariffs on EVs imported into those countries.”

Mr Trump is considering imposing significant tariffs on vehicles and parts made around the world in early April.

Such duties were initially confined to Canada and Mexico but later mostly suspended for four weeks amid complaints from US carmakers.

The president has said they will return on 2 April, alongside “reciprocal” tariffs which are widely expected to hit the European Union for the first time.

Tesla’s letter warned that protectionist policies designed to bolster US manufacturing and jobs were further harmful as “certain parts and components are difficult or impossible to source within the United States”.

It called for a phased approach to allow more time to bolster supply chains.

“As a US manufacturer and exporter, Tesla encourages USTR to consider the downstream impacts of certain proposed actions taken to address unfair trade practices,” the EV maker concluded.

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The document builds on wider pressure to force a U-turn, with industry body Autos Drive America declaring this week that the tariff regime will harm production and earnings, with sales also set to face challenges as tariff costs are reflected in prices.

“Automakers cannot shift their supply chains overnight, and cost increases will inevitably lead to some combination of higher consumer prices, fewer models offered to consumers and shut-down US production lines, leading to
potential job losses across the supply chain,” it wrote.

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Mahmoud Khalil: Nearly 100 arrested in New York after Trump Tower protest in support of pro-Palestinian activist

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Mahmoud Khalil: Nearly 100 arrested in New York after Trump Tower protest in support of pro-Palestinian activist

Jewish protesters have stormed Trump Tower in the city of New York, demanding the release of a pro-Palestinian activist arrested by immigration officials.

At least 150 people poured into the building’s lobby in midtown Manhattan to demonstrate against the detention of Mahmoud Khalil, who led Columbia University protests in 2024 against Israel’s war in Gaza.

The group from Jewish Voice for Peace carried banners, wore red shirts reading “Jews say stop arming Israel” and chanted “Bring Mahmoud home now!”

Local police said 98 were arrested on charges including trespassing, obstruction and resisting arrest.

New York Police officers arrest a demonstrator from the group, Jewish Voice for Peace, who protested inside Trump Tower in support of Columbia graduate student Mahmoud Khalil, Thursday, March 13, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
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Charges included trespassing, obstruction and resisting arrest. Pic: AP

Demonstrators from the group, Jewish Voice for Peace, protest inside Trump Tower in support of Columbia graduate student Mahmoud Khalil, Thursday, March 13, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
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Demonstrators from Jewish Voice for Peace protested inside Trump Tower. Pic: AP

Donald Trump previously described Mr Khalil, 30, who has lawful permanent resident status in the US, as “anti-American”. He is married to an American citizen.

The postgraduate student, from Columbia University’s school of international and public affairs, has been a prominent figure in the university’s pro-Palestinian student protest movement.

Police officers detain protesters during a rally against the ICE detention of Palestinian activist and Columbia University graduate student Mahmoud Khalil, at Trump Tower in New York City, U.S., March 13, 2025. REUTERS/Jeenah Moon
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Local police said they detained 98 people. Pic: Reuters

This week, his deportation was put on hold while his lawyers challenged his detention at an immigration detention centre in Louisiana. On Saturday, he was arrested outside his university residence in Upper Manhattan.

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He has not been charged with a crime.

US secretary of state Marco Rubio has claimed he has reasonable grounds to believe Mr Khalil’s activities or presence in the country could have “serious adverse foreign policy consequences”.

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Student activist Mahmoud Khalil arrested in Trump crackdown

On Thursday, Mr Khalil’s lawyers asked a federal judge to release him from immigration detention.

They argued that President Trump’s administration targeted him for deportation because of his activism, and his detention is a violation of the US Constitution’s First Amendment protections for freedom of speech.

Mahmoud Khalil: An American tolerance test

There’s more to this story than the story itself.

In Donald Trump’s USA, the proceedings against Mahmoud Khalil are an American tolerance test.

At the heart of it is the US Constitution itself and the First Amendment that enshrines the right to free speech.

Mahmoud Khalil is the measure of where it starts and where it ends – the fate of others will turn on his test case.

As President Trump put it, his arrest is the first of “many to come”, citing students who had “engaged in pro-terrorist, antisemitic, anti-American activity”.

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Separately, his lawyers asked the court to block Columbia University from sharing student disciplinary records from campus protests with a Republican-led US House of Representatives committee.

Mr Khalil’s case has become a flashpoint for Mr Trump’s pledge to deport some activists who participated in the wave of protests on US college campuses against Israel’s military assault on Gaza following the October 2023 attack by the militant group Hamas.

FILE - Members of the Columbia University Apartheid Divest group, including Sueda Polat, second from left, and Mahmoud Khalil, center, are surrounded by members of the media outside the Columbia University campus, Tuesday, April 30, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)
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Mahmoud Khalil outside the Columbia University campus in April 2024. File pic: AP

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Mr Trump’s administration has said pro-Palestinian protests on college campuses, including at Columbia, have included support for Hamas and antisemitic harassment of Jewish students.

Last week, the administration said it cancelled grants and contracts worth about $400m (£309m) to Columbia because of what it describes as antisemitic harassment on and near the school’s campus.

Student protest organisers have said criticism of Israel and its actions is being wrongly conflated with antisemitism.

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