The U.S. Coast Guard removed more than 300 Cuban migrants from a remote island national park off the Florida coast Thursday as the U.S. government sought to handle the latest influx in people arriving by boat from the communist island.
Homeland Security officials said the Coast Guard took 337 migrants from Dry Tortugas National Park on 113-kilometer trip to Key West, where they will be processed. They were among more than 700 migrants, mostly Cubans, who arrived in Florida by boat over the New Year's weekend, prompting officials in Florida to appeal to the federal government to do more to deter migrants arriving illegally.
On Thursday, the Biden administration signaled a tougher stance on migrants coming from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela, while offering a new path for migrants from those countries to enter legally.
The government said it would immediately start turning away Cubans, Haitians and Nicaraguans who cross the U.S.-Mexico border illegally, as it has done with Venezuelans. At the same time. it would accept 30,000 people per month from those four nations who arrive legally, have eligible sponsors and pass background checks. It was not immediately clear what impact this would have on migrants who arrive in Florida.
More than 4,400 Cubans and Haitians have arrived in Florida since August amid deepening and compounding political and economic crises in both countries. Almost 8,000 were stopped at sea and returned to their homelands -- about 50 per day compared with 17 per day in the 2021-22 fiscal year and just two per day during the 2020-21 fiscal year. Officials said at least 65 migrants have died since August trying to make the dangerous trek in often rickety boats.
Coast Guard Rear Adm. Brendan McPherson said in a statement late Wednesday that despite the increase, "the southeast maritime border is not open." He asked Cuban and Haitian Americans "to discourage family members in Cuba or Haiti from attempting the dangerous and very often deadly voyage."
Monroe County Sheriff Rick Ramsay, whose jurisdiction is most of the 290-kilometer Florida Keys island chain, said the influx is taxing his 194-deputy department.
Ramsay, a Republican, said Wednesday that he wants the Democratic president and his administration to do more.
"I'm experiencing about 10 migrant loads per day in my small county, which for me, resources wise, is very challenging," Ramsay said at an event sponsored by U.S. Sen. Rick Scott. "I'm sympathetic for the migrants who come here -- I want them to have a happy life. But we have to have a plan."
Scott, a Florida Republican, said the U.S. is experiencing "a border crisis."
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican who used state tax dollars to fly Venezuelan asylum seekers from Texas to Massachusetts to protest Biden's immigration policies, has not said anything this week about the Keys situation. His press office did not respond to email requests for comment Wednesday and Thursday.
Ramon Raul Sanchez with the Cuban-American group Movimiento Democracia said the Biden administration's new policy is like "trying to use a broken umbrella to not get rained on." He said the real problem is the Cuban government, whose actions prompt Cubans to flee their country. Now he said he worries even more Cubans may risk their lives by taking to the sea to reach the U.S. instead of flying to Central America and coming by land.
That's how most Cubans attempt to enter the U.S. In the 2021-22 fiscal year, 220,000 Cubans were stopped at the U.S.-Mexican border, almost six times as many as the previous year.
While federal officials did not give a breakdown of the nationalities of migrants who have arrived in Florida since August, the vast majority who arrive in Florida come from Cuba, which is about 160 kilometers from the Keys. Haitians have a much longer journey -- more than 1,130 kilometers. They usually hopscotch between Caribbean islands to reach the U.S.
Most Cubans will likely be released eventually because the U.S. and Cuba do not have diplomatic relations and the Havana government will not routinely take back migrants who reach U.S. soil, only those who are intercepted at sea.
While some likely will be able to claim they are victims of political persecution at home and be granted asylum, making them eligible for eventual U.S. citizenship, most will probably be designated as economic immigrants who entered the country illegally. They will be required to periodically check in with immigration officials. They will be able to obtain work permits, driver's licences and social security numbers -- but they won't be eligible for U.S. citizenship.
Because the U.S. and Haiti have diplomatic relations, most Haitians who arrive illegally and are caught are returned.
American officials did not condemn India's response to explosive accusations that its government has been involved in an escalating number of violent crimes in Canada.
A Metro Vancouver man will spend up to four years in prison before he is deported after pleading guilty to a triple stabbing that left his sister-in-law dead and two others, including a two-year-old girl, seriously injured.
When you go through the chore of cleaning your home, you hope the end result is a safer, healthier environment for you and your loved ones. But some of the products you are using might put your health at risk.
Amid mounting pressure from within the Liberal caucus for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to consider stepping down as party leader, Liberal MP Anthony Housefather says there should be 'robust' conversations on the topic.
Latvian State Police are investigating the death of Capt. Aaron Wideman, a Canadian soldier in the capital city of Riga.
Canada is listing the pro-Palestinian group Samidoun as a terrorist group, while the U.S. has added a Canadian citizen affiliated with the organization to its counter-terrorism list.
Rock guitarist Jake E. Lee, who’s played with heavy metal heavyweight Ozzy Osbourne, was hospitalized early Tuesday morning after he was shot “multiple times†in Las Vegas, a representative for the musician told CNN in a statement.
For the second straight month, grocery prices in Canada rose faster than the inflation rate, and beef in particular is significantly pricier than it was last year.
From his shrink wrap shock to his obsession with luxury, King Charles III's personal life seems to be filled with surprises, that’s according to a new book by biographer Tom Bower.
Toronto city staff opted not to install GPS devices on untracked parks maintenance vehicles even though they only cost $200 apiece, the audit committee heard Tuesday, in the fallout of a damning investigation that revealed field crews systemically parked at plazas and restaurants while logging on their timesheets that they were on the job.
A La Ronge-area man faces impaired driving charges after a highway rollover that left a teenage boy dead on Saturday.
A Winnipeg high school student placed second in an international neuroscience contest where she competed against nearly 3,000 other students from 40 countries in Chicago, Ill.
Representatives of a British Columbia Sikh temple whose president was shot dead last year, as well as the Sikh independence group he was involved in, say their communities won't feel safe until India's consulates in Vancouver and Toronto are shut down.
A recent wastewater study shows Halifax has the highest THC levels per capita in Canada, with 748 mg per day per 1,000 people.
With the cost of inflation and shrinkflation, Maritimers are paying more for Halloween candy this year.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday refused to say whether he's spoken with Russian President Vladimir Putin since leaving office, but if the two did speak Trump said, it would be 'a smart thing' for the United States.
Alexei Moskalyov, a Russian man jailed for two years for discrediting the army after his daughter drew an anti-war picture, alleged after his release on Tuesday that he had been held in dreadful conditions.
British lawmakers are voting on a bill to strip hereditary aristocrats of the right to sit and vote in the House of Lords after more than 700 years.
From his shrink wrap shock to his obsession with luxury, King Charles III's personal life seems to be filled with surprises, that’s according to a new book by biographer Tom Bower.
North Carolina Republican Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson sued CNN on Tuesday over its recent report that he made explicit racial and sexual posts on a pornography website’s message board, calling the reporting reckless and defamatory.
While more Canadians are signalling their support former U.S. president Donald Trump, the majority remains hopeful for a Democratic win.
Amid mounting pressure from within the Liberal caucus for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to consider stepping down as party leader, Liberal MP Anthony Housefather says there should be 'robust' conversations on the topic.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will testify Wednesday before the federal inquiry into foreign interference, for the second time.
A veteran of Canada's national security systems has been named the new head of the national spy agency.
When you go through the chore of cleaning your home, you hope the end result is a safer, healthier environment for you and your loved ones. But some of the products you are using might put your health at risk.
A Winnipeg high school student placed second in an international neuroscience contest where she competed against nearly 3,000 other students from 40 countries in Chicago, Ill.
The Public Health Agency of Canada says a Listeria outbreak linked to several plant-based milks appears to be over with no additional cases reported since August.
Expect to see more northern lights in unusual places as the sun continues to sizzle, space weather forecasters said Tuesday.
Hong Kong's oldest zoo is seeking answers in a monkey medical mystery after nine animals died in two days, including three members of a critically endangered species.
A NASA spacecraft rocketed away Monday on a quest to explore Jupiter’s tantalizing moon Europa and reveal whether its vast hidden ocean might hold the keys to life.
Lawyers for Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs asked a New York judge Tuesday to force prosecutors to disclose the names of his accusers in his sex trafficking case.
Rock guitarist Jake E. Lee, who’s played with heavy metal heavyweight Ozzy Osbourne, was hospitalized early Tuesday morning after he was shot “multiple times†in Las Vegas, a representative for the musician told CNN in a statement.
Rufus Wainwright says he was 'horrified' to learn that Donald Trump played his cover version of 'Hallelujah' during a presidential campaign event in Pennsylvania on Monday.
The chances of a half-percentage point interest rate cut by the Bank of Canada became more likely Tuesday after Statistics Canada reported the annual inflation rate fell to 1.6 per cent in September.
Cash-starved Boeing, contending with massive financial losses from a crippling strike and years of operational and safety problems, is turning to major banks and Wall Street to raise tens of billions of dollars in cash.
The more than US$3-billion settlement TD Bank Group has reached with U.S. regulators for its failures to oversee money laundering risks has underlined what some say are relatively weak enforcement options in Canada.
If you’ve been pining to plant a tree, now is a great time.
A couple from Owen Sound, Ont. is celebrating their good fortune after becoming instant multi-millionaires with Lotto Max.
Jane Xue sent her dog, a 2-year-old Samoyed named OK, off to her first day of work in mid-September. Her employer? A dog cafe in Fuzhou, in southeastern China.
Johnny Gaudreau’s Columbus teammates were given a few options for how to handle their emotions during the Blue Jackets’ home opener.
Tom Brady has another new role in the NFL: owner.
The PGA of America is facing backlash and accusations of pricing out fans, with a single day ticket for the 2025 Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black in Farmingdale, New York, costing just under US$750.
The Ontario Provincial Police says the number of fatal collisions caused by distracted driving on the roads it patrols has increased by 40 per cent compared to this time last year.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk unveiled on Thursday his vision of a 'a fun, exciting future,' an 'age of abundance' full of his company’s self-driving cars without steering wheels, parking lots turned into parks and robots that will walk among the population – that he once again promised would be available within a few years.
Dozens of cars were pulled out of the Detroit River in west Windsor on Tuesday, causing many questions for Windsorites.
With the cost of inflation and shrinkflation, Maritimers are paying more for Halloween candy this year.
Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation) Chef Paul Natrall, the man behind Indigenous food truck Mr. Bannock, is bringing cooking classes on First Nations fare to schools and offices throughout Metro Vancouver.
The Celtic Colours Festival is taking place at venues around Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia from Oct. 11 to 19.
Sometimes love is written in the stars, but for one couple, it’s written in the aurora borealis.
Canadian hip hop artist Dillan King says running 100 marathons in 100 days was not only the hardest thing he has ever done, but the 'proudest accomplishment' of his entire life.
James Taylor never expected to be walking home with a bag full of groceries he didn't buy.
This weekend marks the fifth anniversary of a large blizzard that paralyzed Manitoba.
There was an eye-catching mix of rainbows and lightning over Vancouver following a brief downpour this week.
Jeff Warner from Aidie Creek Gardens in the northern Ontario community of Englehart has a passion for growing big pumpkins and his effort is paying off in more ways than one.
Featuring multiple subway lines and rapid bus routes, Vancouver-Little Mountain, a new riding for B.C.'s 2024 provincial election, is rapidly densifying.
Representatives of a British Columbia Sikh temple whose president was shot dead last year, as well as the Sikh independence group he was involved in, say their communities won't feel safe until India's consulates in Vancouver and Toronto are shut down.
A suspect has been arrested and charged after an allegedly unprovoked attack on a woman visiting Vancouver.
Toronto city staff opted not to install GPS devices on untracked parks maintenance vehicles even though they only cost $200 apiece, the audit committee heard Tuesday, in the fallout of a damning investigation that revealed field crews systemically parked at plazas and restaurants while logging on their timesheets that they were on the job.
Ontario Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria says the provincial government is introducing legislation that would require municipalities to receive provincial approval before removing traffic lanes to install new bike paths.
Representatives of a British Columbia Sikh temple whose president was shot dead last year, as well as the Sikh independence group he was involved in, say their communities won't feel safe until India's consulates in Vancouver and Toronto are shut down.
As officials with the Calgary Public Library prepare to reopen locations on Wednesday, many questions about the cybersecurity breach that closed them remain unanswered.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says her government is launching a $7-million series of ads against the federal government's proposed cap on oil and gas emissions, a move she believes will hurt production and "kill jobs."
Alberta rolled out its fall immunization campaign on Tuesday, but people hoping to get both a flu and COVID-19 vaccine at the same time might have to wait, with many pharmacies yet to receive a shipment of the new COVID shots.
More than 40 employees at Best Theratronics Ltd. in Kanata went on strike five and a half months ago - a situation that Canada's largest private sector union says is highly unusual.
For the first time, protective measures are being expanded to infants to ward off RSV this fall and winter.
Latvian State Police are investigating the death of Capt. Aaron Wideman, a Canadian soldier in the capital city of Riga.
Hundreds of would-be voters waited outside the English Montreal School Board (EMSB) offices on Tuesday, the last night to register for the upcoming school board election on Nov. 3.
Montreal police (SPVM) said a suspect was “caught red-handed†spray painting graffiti on the SPVM’s North Operations Centre building in the Ahuntsic-Cartierville borough on Tuesday.
In an effort to make it safer for pedestrians and cyclists, the City of Montreal is planning to make long-awaited changes to the St-Pierre interchange in LaSalle.
The Alberta government continues to divvy up its provincial health authority, with the health minister saying the new agency responsible for primary care is expected to be up and running by November.
Construction work has started at several temporary housing sites in Jasper.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says her government is launching a $7-million series of ads against the federal government's proposed cap on oil and gas emissions, a move she believes will hurt production and "kill jobs."
Three people, including a child, were killed in two separate collisions on Highway 101 in Nova Scotia’s Annapolis Valley over the Thanksgiving weekend.
The Nova Scotia government says that in the coming days it will start building a 500-metre-long berm to protect a low-lying land link between the province and New Brunswick.
A local entrepreneur is preserving an historic train station in Amherst, N.S.
A 28-year-old Winnipegger is facing charges after an altercation unfolded between a store employee and a man who allegedly tried to steal merchandise from a West Alexander area store.
Winnipeg's mayor is asking for patience from motorists during anticipated traffic delays at Portage and Main, as work begins to reopen the famed intersection.
The Winnipeg Jets have started the 2024-25 season undefeated on the ice and have seen a bump in season ticket buyers off of it.
The stage is set at Saskatchewan's Legislative Building for the 2024 Leaders Debate. The event follows a tradition of broadcast events that began all the way back in 1957.
The early fall season has been an entertaining time for northern lights viewing. Aurora Borealis, as it is also known, is a night sky phenomenon which can happen throughout the year.
Regina police say one person was taken into custody following reports of a weapons offence at Thom Collegiate Tuesday afternoon.
Erick Buhr, the man accused of killing his grandmother in 2022, has pled not guilty to second-degree murder.
People living in the Ontario and King Street area of Stratford may notice a heavy police presence.
Bird feces has now been identified as the “mysterious†substance dropped onto Ayr, Ont. home in August.
A La Ronge-area man faces impaired driving charges after a highway rollover that left a teenage boy dead on Saturday.
Saskatoon police arrested five people and seized kilos of cocaine and methamphetamine in a targeted bust this month.
A motel in North Battleford went up in flames on Monday night.
Impaired driving charges against a Brampton, Ont., man have been dismissed after his lawyer successfully argued that his Charter rights were breached during his Sudbury-area arrest.
A Greater Sudbury woman is upset about the charges laid against the man accused of attacking her son and a group of his colleagues downtown on Saturday.
A 33-year-old suspect in the Sault is facing several charges after reacting angrily when a youth knocked over their basketball net Oct. 5.
Residents are rallying for change in Lambton County following a fatal crash.
It took the full day for a jury to be selected in the trial of two people charged in connection with the shooting death of an 18-year-old Western University student more than three years ago.
“I wasn't using a walker in July, but I am now using walker all the time,†said Martyn, who is struggling to move and can’t stand for long periods of time.
Police are investigating a drive-by shooting in Springwater Township that they say happened over the Thanksgiving Day long weekend.
Â鶹´«Ã½ has confirmed a Beeton, Ont., man accused in a historical sex crimes case involving a five-year-old girl is facing additional charges.
A couple from Owen Sound, Ont. is celebrating their good fortune after becoming instant multi-millionaires with Lotto Max.
Family and friends of Soham Lane of Harrow, Ont. are gathering this week to remember the late 16 year old who died suddenly earlier this month following a collision on Oct. 6.
Essex County OPP are crediting police canine Philie for helping out in the seizure of illegal drugs, cash, and stolen property worth $110,000.
Despite a high rate of mortgage-free homeowners in the Windsor-Essex region, experts believe higher costs and interest rates will make paid-off homes less of a reality in the coming years.
New Democrat Leader David Eby is making a late appeal to voters to support his party even if they never have before, as the British Columbia election campaign enters the home stretch.
A Metro Vancouver man will spend up to four years in prison before he is deported after pleading guilty to a triple stabbing that left his sister-in-law dead and two others, including a two-year-old girl, seriously injured.
Lawyers for the founders of Vancouver's Drug User Liberation Front say their clients are being wrongfully criminalized for operating a club that provided untainted drugs to people who would otherwise be at the mercy of a toxic and deadly illicit drug supply.
Dave Lindsey began growing giant pumpkins to bring a bit of magic to his grandkids' Halloween.
A U.S. District Court judge in Montana has sentenced a 27-year-old man from Kelowna, B.C., to 18 months in prison for using fake names to buy guns with the aim of selling them in Canada.
Nearly two years after a man was stabbed to death in downtown Kelowna, RCMP have made an arrest in the case.
Health-care advocates say the province's plan for a new primary care agency, operating separately from Alberta Health Services, won't help with doctor shortages in Lethbridge.
The Vancouver Giants scored late to force overtime before winning 4-3 over the Lethbridge Hurricanes Friday night.
If you’re looking for something to do this long weekend, the Lethbridge Corn Maze is open and hosting its annual fundraiser on Monday.
A 33-year-old suspect in the Sault is facing several charges after reacting angrily when a youth knocked over their basketball net Oct. 5.
A suspected impaired driver who tried to walk away after running a red light and crashing into a ditch is facing several charges, Sault police said Tuesday.
Home sales declined in North Bay in September compared to a year earlier, but sale prices held firm, according to data from the Canadian Real Estate Association.
A five-hour drive from St. John's, N.L., and well off the beaten path, Point Leamington seems an unlikely spot for a one-of-a-kind tourist attraction.
A Conservative MP from Newfoundland and Labrador says some small towns in his rural riding are overrun with crime, but police say they haven't received reports to that effect.
As millions in federal funding flow into a Labrador group whose claims of Inuit identity have been rejected by Indigenous organizations across Canada, a national Inuit leader worries the Liberal government is putting the rights of Indigenous Peoples at risk.
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