Trump signs a proclamation restricting asylum seekers at the border

WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump delivered on his mid-term promise to crack down on undocumented immigrants crossing the Southwest border on Friday by signing a proclamation that will make it more difficult for asylum seekers to cross the border into the country. designated entry points.

On Saturday morning, starting at midnight, asylum seekers who will not show up at the entry points will be apprehended, detained and deported unless they can cross a higher bar, for example to prove that they would be tortured if they were sent home.

Within hours, the American Civil Liberties Union sued to block the new restrictions, calling it "the ban on asylum."

"The ban on asylum is not only illegal, it will also put families at risk and we hope the courts will intervene to remedy this injustice," said Lee Gelernt, deputy project director. Immigrants' Rights of the ACLU.

Senior government officials said at a conference call Thursday to reporters that the president had legal authority to do so because of immigration law provisions that allowed the president to determine who was admitted to the United States – the same language used by the administration for his travels. prohibition in court.

Officials said the goal was to force more immigrants wishing to apply for asylum to do so at designated entry points. Recently, many asylum seekers have chosen to cross illegally because they are required to wait several days in Mexico due to delays accumulated at the points of entry.

The new restrictions will apply for 90 days, but could end sooner, officials said.

In international law, however, asylum seekers are allowed to apply regardless of where they enter.

The administration was waiting for prosecution to take place, which could prevent the new policy from coming into effect, but officials told NBC News that they were not there. were waiting for the Supreme Court to maintain their right to block asylum seekers with Judge Brett Kavanaugh currently on the bench.

Immigrants who cross entry points will still be able to apply for asylum, but will have to prove that they encounter an obstacle greater than the "credible fear" of returning to their home country, to know the current preliminary test. According to the new regulation, asylum seekers will only be allowed to stay in the US while waiting to be tried by a court that they are able to prove that they have a "reasonable fear" or are protected under the UN Convention Against Torture. .

The full text of the new regulation is available here.

Julia Ainsley

Julia Ainsley is a national security reporter for NBC News.