The State Department has directed U.S. embassies across the Western Hemisphere to submit reports detailing alleged human rights abuses in their host countries that are linked to mass migration, according to guidance issued Tuesday.
The Trump administration earlier this year withdrew the United States from the United Nations Human Rights Council. Officials now want embassies to assess whether abuses abroad are fueling migration flows affecting the United States.
In a public statement, the department said mass migration caused significant harm to the U.S. before President Trump secured the border, pointing to impacts on public safety, the opioid crisis, and the asylum system.
The department said transnational routes used for migration are often controlled by terror-linked criminal organizations, adding that narco-terror networks facilitating migration engage in child trafficking, forced labor, sexual assault, and other serious abuses that undermine the rule of law.
Embassies in Europe and Latin America were instructed to document crimes tied to migration surges and to urge foreign governments to protect their borders and citizens, with the department saying the U.S. stands ready to work with regional partners to address the global migration crisis.
