Editor's note: We want you to know what's happening, why and how it could impact your life, family or business, so we created a weekly digest of the top original immigration, migration and refugee reporting from across VOA. Questions? Tips? Comments? Email the VOA immigration team: ImmigrationUnit@voanews.com.
Six migrant children have died in U.S. custody
A previously unreported migrant death was acknowledged by U.S. officials on Wednesday, days after a 16-year-old Guatemalan boy suffering flu symptoms died in U.S. Customs and Border Protection custody. That brings the total number of announced migrant child deaths that occurred under U.S. custody to six since December 2018.
On Thursday, Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Kevin McAleenan told a Senate panel that that the escalating humanitarian and security crisis on the border has overwhelmed the system and depleted resources.
These are the six migrant children who have died in U.S. custody:
· Carlos Gregorio Hernandez-Vasquez, 16, Guatemala, died May 20 of influenza A.
· Wilmer Josué Ramírez Vásquez, 2, Guatemala, died May 14 of pneumonia.
· Juan de León Gutiérrez, 16, Guatemala, died April 30; cause of death: under investigation, suffered from Pott's puffy tumor; experienced fever, chills, headache.
· Felipe Alonzo-Gomez, 8, Guatemala, died December 24; cause of death: under investigation, tested positive for influenza B.
· Jakelin Amei Rosmery Caal Maquin, 7, Guatemala, died December 8 of sepsis shock.
· Darlin Valle, 10, El Salvador, died September 29 (reported May 22) of fever and respiratory distress; had a history of congenital heart defects.
Migrant Ghetto' Crackdown in Denmark
Denmark's right wing coalition government has adopted the term "ghetto" in a crackdown on migrant communities with large Muslim populations. The government identified 30 districts nationwide where it plans to force children to attend classes on "Danish values," as VOA's Henry Ridgwell reports.
The topic is being viewed in part as a referendum on immigration, ahead of this week's EU Parliament elections.
UN Palestinian Refugee Agency Pleads for Funds
Funding for operations that support Palestinian refugees could dry up by mid-June, the commissioner-general of the the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) told the U.N. Security Council on Wednesday. UNRWA provides education, health care, and other essential services to more than 5 million Palestinian refugees in the Gaza Strip, West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.
From the feds:
· U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers have arrested 31 individuals in New York City, Long Island and the Hudson Valley, during a five-day enforcement surge (May 19-23). ICE reports that 26 of those arrested were convicted criminals or had criminal charges pending.
· U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced a digital immigration processing system, intended to facilitate immigration benefit requests, with more classifications on the way.
