United States authorities reported the arrival of 20 Cuban rafters to the coast of Florida. This after having risked his life crossing the sea in search of better life opportunities abroad.
According to an official statement shared by Samuel Briggs II, head of the US Border Patrol (USBP) in the Miami Sector, the rafters made landfall after arriving aboard a homemade vessel.
While he did not specify the area where the rafters arrived, the official indicated that the authorities of the Florida Keys arrived at the location on Thursday, February 29 to detain the 20 Cubans, placing them in custody to begin their deportation process.
“Earlier today, agents from the US Border Patrol and the Keys Sheriff’s Office responded to the disembarkation of migrants in the Florida Keys and encountered 20 Cuban immigrants who arrived on a homemade boat,” the post reads. .
The statement was accompanied by a photograph of the boat used by the twenty rafters, which was made of wood and had a sail to propel itself.
The ship, named “El Tigre”, is poorly equipped to make this type of trip, which shows the extremes to which Cubans are willing to go to escape the misery experienced in the Greater Antilles. .
Earlier today, U.S. Border Patrol agents & @keyssheriff partners responded to a migrant landing in the Florida Keys & encountered 20 Cuban migrants who arrived on a homemade vessel.#leapday #floridakeys #Cuba pic.twitter.com/tEtXAGFdc3
— Samuel Briggs II (@USBPChiefMIP) February 29, 2024
While the measures applied by President Joe Biden at the beginning of 2023 resulted in a decrease in the number of Cubans trying to reach the United States by sea, this number never completely stopped, as many preferred to take risks at sea rather than continue trying to get ahead. in a country where the economic crisis made their daily lives difficult.
Just a week ago, North American authorities returned 25 Cuban rafters who were intercepted at sea, some of them minors.
According to official information, this group left Cuba illegally on February 15 from the coast of Playa Baracoa, in the province of Artemisa.
The repatriation operation was carried out by a US Coast Guard (USCG) service vessel, which transported the group to the well-known Port of Orozco, located in the municipality of Bahía Honda, in the same province from which they left. .
According to the Ministry of the Interior (Minint), the group consisted of 16 men and eight women of legal age, as well as one girl.
#Migration | Coast Guard Service #USA 🇺🇸 returns to #Cuba 🇨🇺 to 25 irregular migrants, including a minor, who participated in an illegal departure from the country on February 15 through Playa Baracoa, Artemisa.
🔗https://t.co/xK3ZuvHOXa
📸 Mention pic.twitter.com/nReRBoxhri— Canal Caribe (@CanalCaribeCuba) February 22, 2024
#arrest #Cuban #rafters #landed #Florida
