Weekslong lockups of European tourists at US borders spark fears of traveling to America

Weekslong lockups of European tourists at US borders spark fears of traveling to America
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Border Patrol agents and members of the military stand inside a gate in one of two border walls separating Mexico from the US March 21, 2025, in San Diego, California. (AP Photo)
Weekslong lockups of European tourists at US borders spark fears of traveling to America
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A Marine helps guide a vehicle during a news conference on joint operations involving the military and the Border Patrol on March 21, 2025, in San Diego, California. (AP Photo)
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Updated 22 March 2025
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Weekslong lockups of European tourists at US borders spark fears of traveling to America

Weekslong lockups of European tourists at US borders spark fears of traveling to America
  • Since Trump took office, there have been incidents of tourists being stopped at US border crossings and held for weeks at US immigration detention facilities before being allowed to fly home at their own expense

SAN DIEGO, California: Lennon Tyler and her German fiancé often took road trips to Mexico when he vacationed in the United States since it was only a day’s drive from her home in Las Vegas, one of the perks of their long-distance relationship.
But things went terribly wrong when they drove back from Tijuana last month.
US border agents handcuffed Tyler, a US citizen, and chained her to a bench, while her fiancé, Lucas Sielaff, was accused of violating the rules of his 90-day US tourist permit, the couple said. Authorities later handcuffed and shackled Sielaff and sent him to a crowded US immigration detention center. He spent 16 days locked up before being allowed to fly home to Germany.

Since President Donald Trump took office, there have been other incidents of tourists like Sielaff being stopped at US border crossings and held for weeks at US immigration detention facilities before being allowed to fly home at their own expense.
They include another German tourist who was stopped at the Tijuana crossing on Jan. 25. Jessica Brösche spent over six weeks locked up, including over a week in solitary confinement, a friend said.




Lucas Sielaff poses for a photo in Bad Bibra, Germany, on March 20, 2025. He spent 16 days locked up in a crowded US border prison before being allowed to fly home to Germany. (AP Photo)

On the Canadian border, a backpacker from Wales spent nearly three weeks at a detention center before flying home this week. And a Canadian woman on a work visa detained at the Tijuana border spent 12 days in detention before returning home last weekend.
Sielaff, 25, and the others say it was never made clear why they were taken into custody even after they offered to go home voluntarily.
Pedro Rios, director of the American Friends Service Committee’s US-Mexico border program, a nonprofit that aids migrants, said in the 22 years he has worked on the border he’s never seen travelers from Western Europe and Canada, longtime US allies, locked up like this.
“It’s definitely unusual with these cases so close together, and the rationale for detaining these people doesn’t make sense,” he said. “It doesn’t justify the abhorrent treatment and conditions” they endured.
“The only reason I see is there is a much more fervent anti-immigrant atmosphere,” Rios said.
Of course, tourists from countries where the US requires visas — many of them non-Western nations — have long encountered difficulties entering the US
US authorities did not respond to a request from The Associated Press for figures on how many tourists have recently been held at detention facilities or explain why they weren’t simply denied entry.
‘Deemed inadmissible’
The incidents are fueling anxiety as the Trump administration prepares for a ban on travelers from some countries. Noting the “evolving” federal travel policies, the University of California, Los Angeles sent a notice this week urging its foreign-born students and staff to consider the risks of travel for spring break, warning “re-entry requirements may change while you are away, impacting your return.”
Immigration and Customs Enforcement said in an email to the AP that Sielaff and Brösche, who was held for 45 days, “were deemed inadmissible” by Customs and Border Protection. That agency said it cannot discuss specifics but “if statutes or visa terms are violated, travelers may be subject to detention and removal.” The agencies did not comment on the other cases.
Both German tourists were allowed into the United States under a program offered to a select group of countries, mostly in Europe and Asia, whose citizens are allowed to travel to the US for business or leisure for up to 90 days without getting a visa in advance. Applicants register online with the Electronic System for Travel Authorization.




Border Patrol agents and members of the military stand inside a gate in one of two border walls separating Mexico from the US  March 21, 2025, in San Diego, California. (AP Photo)

But even if they are authorized to travel under that system, US authorities have wide discretion to still deny entry. Following the detentions, Britain and Germany updated their travel advisories to alert people about the strict US border enforcement. The United Kingdom warned “you may be liable to arrest or detention if you break the rules.”
Sielaff arrived in the US on Jan. 27. He and Tyler decided to go to Tijuana for four days in mid-February because Tyler’s dog needed surgery and veterinary services are cheaper there. They figured they would enjoy some tacos and make a fun trip out of it.
“Mexico is a wonderful and beautiful country that Lucas and I love to visit,” Tyler said.
They returned Feb. 18, just 22 days into Sielaff’s 90-day tourist permit.
When they pulled up to the crossing, the US border agent asked Sielaff aggressively, “Where are you going? Where do you live?” Tyler said.
“English is not Lucas’ first language and so he said, ‘We’re going to Las Vegas,’ and the agent says, ‘Oh, we caught you. You live in Las Vegas. You can’t do that,’” Tyler said.
Sielaff was taken away for more questioning. Tyler said she asked to go with him or if he could get a translator and was told to be quiet, then taken out of her car and handcuffed and chained to a bench. Her dog, recovering from surgery, was left in the car.
After four hours, Tyler was allowed to leave but said she was given no information about her fiancé’s whereabouts.
During questioning, Sielaff said he told authorities he never lived in the US and had no criminal history. He said he was given a full-body search and ordered to hand over his cellphone and belongings. He was put in a holding cell where he slept on a bench for two days before being transferred to the Otay Mesa Detention Center in San Diego.
There, he said, he shared a cell with eight others.
“You are angry, you are sad, you don’t know when you can get out,” Sielaff said. “You just don’t get any answers from anybody.”
He was finally told to get a direct flight to Germany and submit a confirmation number. In a frantic call from Sielaff, Tyler bought it for $2,744. He flew back March 5.
‘A blatant abuse’ of US border authorities’ power, victims say
“What happened at the border was just blatant abuse of the Border Patrol’s power,” Tyler said.
Ashley Paschen agrees. She said she learned about Brösche from a TikTok video asking anyone in the San Diego area for help after her family learned she was being held at the Otay Mesa Detention Center. Paschen visited her several times and told her people were working to get her out. Brosche flew home March 11.
“She’s happy to be home,” Paschen said. “She seems very relieved if anything but she’s not coming back here anytime soon.”




A member of Mexico’s National Guard patrols along the primary fence on the Mexico-US border in Tijuana, Mexico, on March 18, 2025, as part of the Mexican government’s response to US President Donald Trump’s demand to crack down on immigration and drug smuggling. (REUTERS)

On Feb. 26, a tourist from Wales, Becky Burke, a backpacker traveling across North America, was stopped at the US-Canada border and held for nearly three weeks at a detention facility in Washington state, her father, Paul Burke, posted on Facebook. She returned home Tuesday.
On March 3, Canadian Jasmine Mooney, an actress and entrepreneur on a US work visa, was detained at the Tijuana crossing. She was released Saturday, her friend Brittany Kors said.
Before Mooney’s release, British Columbia Premier David Eby expressed concern, saying: “It certainly reinforces anxiety that ... many Canadians have about our relationship with the US right now, and the unpredictability of this administration and its actions.”
The detentions come amid legal fights over the Trump administration’s arrests and deportations of other foreigners with valid visas and green card holders, including a Palestinian activist who helped organize campus protests of the war in Gaza.
Tyler plans to sue the US government.
Sielaff said he and Tyler are now rethinking plans to hold their wedding in Las Vegas. He suffers nightmares and is considering therapy to cope with the trauma.
“Nobody is safe there anymore to come to America as a tourist,” he said.


China’s Xi says tariffs ‘hurt’ multilateral trade: state media

China’s Xi says tariffs ‘hurt’ multilateral trade: state media
Updated 15 sec ago
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China’s Xi says tariffs ‘hurt’ multilateral trade: state media

China’s Xi says tariffs ‘hurt’ multilateral trade: state media
  • China responded with a 125 percent duty on goods from the United States.
Beijing: Chinese President Xi Jinping said Wednesday tariffs “hurt” the multilateral trading system as he hosted his Azerbaijani counterpart for talks in Beijing, state media said.
Tariff and trade wars “undermine the legitimate rights and interests of all countries, hurt the multilateral trading system, and impact the world economic order,” he told Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, state news agency Xinhua reported.
Beijing and Washington have been embroiled in a blistering trade war since US President Donald Trump this month slapped a 145 percent blanket tax on Chinese imports.
China responded with a 125 percent duty on goods from the United States.
Beijing’s commerce ministry this week warned other nations to be wary in seeking a deal with Washington.
“China firmly opposes any party reaching a deal at the expense of China’s interests,” a ministry spokesperson said Monday in a statement.
“Appeasement will not bring peace, and compromise will not be respected,” the statement said.
On Wednesday, Xi said that “despite a constantly changing international situation,” China and Azerbaijan had maintained close ties.
A day earlier, in phone calls with his British and Austrian counterparts, Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi urged Britain and the European Union to help in defending multilateral trade.

Pope Francis’ body to lie in state in St. Peter’s Basilica as the faithful mourn

Pope Francis’ body to lie in state in St. Peter’s Basilica as the faithful mourn
Updated 6 min 32 sec ago
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Pope Francis’ body to lie in state in St. Peter’s Basilica as the faithful mourn

Pope Francis’ body to lie in state in St. Peter’s Basilica as the faithful mourn
  • Heads of state are expected for Pope Francis’ funeral Saturday in St. Peter’s Square
  • The three days of public viewing are largely for ordinary Catholics to grieve the pontiff

VATICAN CITY: The body of Pope Francis will be moved to St. Peter’s Basilica early Wednesday to lie in state for the Catholic faithful to pay their respects to the Argentine pontiff remembered for his humble style, concern for the poor and insistent prayers for peace.
Heads of state are expected for the funeral Saturday in St. Peter’s Square, but the three days of public viewing are largely for ordinary Catholics to grieve the 88-year-old pope, who died Monday after suffering a stroke.
Francis first lay in state in the Santa Marta Domus in a private viewing for Vatican residents and the papal household. Images released by the Vatican on Tuesday showed Francis lying in an open casket, wearing the traditional pointed headdress of bishops and red robes, his hands folded over a rosary. The Vatican’s No. 2, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, was pictured praying by Francis.
His body will be transferred Wednesday morning to St. Peter’s Basilica, which will be kept open until midnight on Wednesday and Thursday to allow the faithful to mourn. The public mourning period will end on Friday at 7 p.m.
Once inside the basilica, his casket won’t be put on an elevated bier – as was the case with past popes – but will just be placed on the main altar of the 16th-century basilica, simply facing the pews.
Italian police have tightened security for the viewing and the funeral, carrying out foot and horse patrols around the Vatican, where pilgrims continued to arrive for the Holy Year celebrations that Francis opened in December. The faithful who walk through St. Peter’s Holy Door are granted indulgences, a way to help atone for sins.
“For me, Pope Francis represents a great pastor, as well as a great friend to all of us,’’ said Micale Sales, visiting St. Peter’s Basilica from Brazil.
“I think he spread a positive message around the world, saying there shouldn’t be any violence, there should be peace around the world,’’ said Amit Kukreja, from Australia.
The funeral has been set for Saturday at 10 a.m. in St. Peter’s Square, and will be attended by leaders including US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodmyr Zelensky.
Cardinals are continuing their meetings this week to plan the conclave to elect Francis’ successor, make other decisions about running the Catholic Church as world leaders and the ordinary faithful grieve the pontiff’s death.
History’s first Latin American pontiff charmed the world with his humble style and concern for the poor but alienated many conservatives with critiques of capitalism and climate change. He last appeared in public on Sunday with an Easter blessing and popemobile tour through a cheering crowd in St. Peter’s Square.
He had some reservations about looping through the square packed with 50,000 faithful, Vatican News reported on Tuesday, but overcame them – and was thankful that he had greeted the crowd. He died the next morning.
“The death of a pope is not a small thing, because we’ve lost our leader,’’ said Julio Henrique from Brazil. “But still, in a few days, we will have a new leader. So … the thing of hope remains. Who will assume Peter’s throne?”


Vietnam village starts over with climate defenses after landslide

Vietnam village starts over with climate defenses after landslide
Updated 23 April 2025
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Vietnam village starts over with climate defenses after landslide

Vietnam village starts over with climate defenses after landslide
  • Last year, Typhoon Yagi’s rains unleashed a landslide that engulfed much of Lang Nu village in mountainous Lao Cai province

LAO CAI, Vietnam: Nguyen Thi Kim’s small verdant community in northern Vietnam no longer exists, wiped away in a landslide triggered by Typhoon Yagi’s devastating heavy rains last year.
She and dozens of survivors have been relocated to a site that authorities hope will withstand future climate change-linked disasters, with stronger homes, drainage canals and a gentler topography that lessens landslide risks.
It is an example of the challenges communities around the world face in adapting to climate change, including more intense rains and flash floods like those Typhoon Yagi brought last September.
Kim lost 14 relatives and her traditional timber stilt home when Yagi’s rains unleashed a landslide that engulfed much of Lang Nu village in mountainous Lao Cai province.
The storm was the strongest to hit Vietnam in decades, killing at least 320 people in the country and causing an estimated $1.6 billion in economic losses.
It is unlikely to be an outlier though, with research last year showing climate change is causing typhoons in the region to intensify faster and last longer over land.
Climate change, caused largely by burning fossil fuels, impacts typhoons in multiple ways: a warmer atmosphere holds more water, making for heavier rains, and warmer oceans also help fuel tropical storms.
Kim remains traumatized by the landslide.
She says everything is painful, especially the memory of the moment a torrent of mud swept away her and her two-year-old daughter.
“This disaster was too big for us all,” she said recalling the moment the pair were pulled from the mud hours later.
“I still cannot talk about it without crying. I can’t forget,” the 28-year-old said.
Yagi hit Vietnam with winds in excess of 149 kilometers (92 miles) per hour and brought a deluge of rain that caused destructive flooding in parts of Laos, Thailand and Myanmar.
In Lang Nu, 67 residents were killed, and authorities vowed to rebuild the homes of survivors in a safe spot.
By December, 40 new houses were ready at a site around two kilometers away.
It was chosen for its elevation, which should be less impacted by adjacent streams, and its relatively gentle slope gradient.
“Predicting absolute safety in geology is actually very difficult,” said Tran Thanh Hai, rector of Hanoi University of Geology and Mining, who was involved in choosing a new site.
But the site is secure, “to the best of our knowledge and understanding.”
Lao Cai is one of Vietnam’s poorest areas, with little money for expensive warning systems.
However, a simple drainage system runs through the new community, diverting water away from the slope.
This should reduce soil saturation and the chances of another landslide, scientists who worked on the site said.
The village’s new homes are all built of sturdier concrete, rather than traditional wood.
“We want to follow our traditions, but if it’s not safe any longer, we need to change,” Kim said, staring out at the expanse of mud and rock where her old village once stood.
Months later it remains frozen in time, strewn with children’s toys, kitchen pans and motorcycle helmets caught up in the landslide.
Like Kim, 41-year-old Hoang Thi Bay now lives in the new village in a modern stilt house with steel structural beams.
Her roof, once made of palm leaves, is now corrugated iron and her doors are aluminum glass.
She survived the landslide by clinging desperately to the single concrete pillar in her old home as a wall of mud and rocks swept her neighborhood away.
“I still wake up in the night obsessing over what happened,” she said.
“Our old house was bigger and nicer, with gardens and fields. But I sleep here in the new house and I feel much safer,” she said.
Even at the new site, home to around 70 people, there are risks, warned Hai.
Development that changes the slope’s gradient, or construction of dams or reservoirs in the area could make the region more landslide-prone, he said.
Building more houses or new roads in the immediate area, or losing protective forest cover that holds earth in place, could also make the site unsafe, added Do Minh Duc, a professor at the Institute of Geotechnics and Environment at the Vietnam National University in Hanoi.
Yagi wiped out large areas of mature natural forest in Lao Cai and while private companies have donated trees for planting, it is unclear whether they can provide much protection.
“In terms of landslide prevention, the only forest that can have good (protective) effects is rainforest with a very high density of trees, so-called primary forest,” explained Duc, an expert on disaster risk maps who also helped choose the new site.
Leaving the old community was hard for Kim, whose family had lived and farmed there for nearly half a century.
But she is grateful that she and other survivors have a second chance.
“I believe this is the safest ground for us.”


India hunts gunmen who massacred 26 in Kashmir tourist hotspot

 India hunts gunmen who massacred 26 in Kashmir tourist hotspot
Updated 34 min 44 sec ago
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India hunts gunmen who massacred 26 in Kashmir tourist hotspot

 India hunts gunmen who massacred 26 in Kashmir tourist hotspot
  • Kashmir has been divided between nuclear-armed rivals India and Pakistan since their independence in 1947
  • Rebel groups have fought for decades demanding independence for Kashmir or its merger with Pakistan

Pahalgam, India: Indian security forces in Kashmir carried out a major manhunt Wednesday, a day after gunmen opened fire on tourists, slaughtering 26 people in the region's deadliest attack on civilians since 2000.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who cut short a state visit to Saudi Arabia, decried the "heinous act" and pledged that the attackers "will be brought to justice".
A hospital list of the dead verified by police listed 26 dead in the attack -- all men, who were killed on Tuesday afternoon when gunmen burst out of forests at a popular tourist spot and raked crowds of visitors with automatic gunfire.
All the dead were listed as residents of India -- many from across the country -- except one living in neighbouring Nepal.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said the attack had been "much larger than anything we've seen directed at civilians in recent years".
No group has claimed responsibility, but rebels in the Muslim-majority region have waged an insurgency since 1989.
They are seeking independence or a merger with Pakistan, which controls a smaller part of the Kashmir region and, like India, claims it in full.
"This attack on our visitors is an abomination," Abdullah said in a statement after the attack.
"The perpetrators of this attack are animals, inhuman and worthy of contempt."
AFP journalists near the site of the attack in Pahalgam, a popular site for tourists in summer some 90 kilometres (55 miles) by road from the key city of Srinagar, reported heavy deployment of security forces.
"The search operation is currently in progress, with all efforts focused on bringing the attackers to justice," the Indian army said in a statement.
In a separate incident, at Barumulla, the army reported Wednesday a "heavy exchange of fire" with gunmen they said were part of an "infiltration bid" crossing the contested frontier from Pakistan.
"Two terrorists have been eliminated", the army said.
At Pahalgam, a tour guide told AFP he reached the scene after hearing gunfire and had transported some of the wounded away on horseback.
Waheed, who gave only one name, said he saw several men lying dead on the ground, while a witness who requested anonymity said the attackers were "clearly sparing women".
The killings came a day after Modi met US Vice President JD Vance in New Delhi.
"Their evil agenda will never succeed. Our resolve to fight terrorism is unshakable and it will get even stronger," Modi said in a statement shortly after the attack.
The deadliest recent attack on civilians was in March 2000, when 36 Indians were killed. That attack occurred on the eve of a visit by US president Bill Clinton.
The killings on Tuesday sparked global outrage.
US President Donald Trump called Modi to quickly offer "full support to India to bring to justice the perpetrators of this heinous attack".
Among the foreign leaders condemning the attack and offering support, EU chief Ursula von der Leyen pledged that "Europe will stand with you".
India has an estimated 500,000 soldiers permanently deployed in the territory but fighting has eased since Modi's government revoked Kashmir's limited autonomy in 2019.
In recent years, the authorities have promoted the mountainous region as a holiday destination, both for skiing in winter, and to escape the sweltering summer heat elsewhere in India.
Around 3.5 million tourists visited Kashmir in 2024, mostly domestic visitors.
Air India said it was adding two extra flights out of Srinagar on Wednesday, as terrified tourists sought to return home.
The worst attack in recent years took place in Pulwama in February 2019, when insurgents rammed a car packed with explosives into a police convoy killing 40 and wounding at least 35 others.
Analyst Michael Kugelman argued that the attack posed a "very serious risk of a new crisis between India and Pakistan, and probably the most serious risk of a crisis since the brief military conflict that happened in 2019".
India regularly blames Pakistan for backing gunmen behind the insurgency.
Islamabad denies the allegation, saying it only supports Kashmir's struggle for self-determination.
One woman survivor described how men in uniform emerged from forests at a meadow where tourists were enjoying the peace of nature, The Indian Express newspaper reported.
Survivors said they had assumed they were policemen.
"They were there at least for 20 minutes, undeterred, moving around and opening fire", the newspaper quoted the survivor as saying.
"It seemed like an eternity".


Thousands evacuate as fire spreads in US state of New Jersey

Thousands evacuate as fire spreads in US state of New Jersey
Updated 23 April 2025
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Thousands evacuate as fire spreads in US state of New Jersey

Thousands evacuate as fire spreads in US state of New Jersey
  • Jones Road Wildfire was raging across Ocean County and was 10 percent contained
  • Local media said the blaze had begun in a massive, rural coastal ecosystem known as the Pine Barrens

NEW YORK: Some 3,000 residents were evacuated in the US state of New Jersey after a wildfire exploded in size, scorching thousands of acres and threatening hundreds of structures, the state’s fire service said Tuesday.
As of 10:30 p.m. (0230 GMT) the Jones Road Wildfire was raging across Ocean County and was 10 percent contained, the New Jersey Forest Fire Service said in a post on social media platform X.
It put the size of the blaze at 8,500 acres (3,440 hectares), just two hours after reporting the fire had hit 3,200 acres.
The fire service said “numerous” fire and rescue personnel had been deployed along with fire engines, bulldozers and ground crews.
It said the cause of the fire was “under investigation.”
Local media said the blaze had begun in a massive, rural coastal ecosystem known as the Pine Barrens, one of the largest protected land areas on the US East Coast.
New Jersey had been under an official drought warning, the state’s Department of Environmental Protection said in March.
Power was knocked out to roughly 25,000 customers, Jersey Central Power & Light said in a post on X.
The blaze also forced the closure of a section of the Garden State Parkway, a major highway through the state.
Ocean County, south of New York City, is a popular tourist destination that is part of the Jersey Shore and contains sights such as the Six Flags amusement park.
The fire service said it would hold a press conference on Wednesday.