Tijuana long served as a gateway for legal and illegal crossings between Mexico and Southern California. But its shelters have now thinned out and migrants have left its streets.

The Department of Homeland Security on Thursday told hundreds of thousands of migrants that their permission to live in the United States had been revoked and they should leave.

The government’s offer to pay a stipend, waive fees, and let people return legally to the U.S. go against current law and court practices, immigration lawyers say.

Facilities for migrants at the base currently can hold fewer than 200 detainees, and there are no immediate plans to expand that capacity, according to two Defense Department officials. Like others interviewed for this article, they spoke on the condition of anonymity because the Trump administration considers the mission sensitive.

More than 900 migrants crossed the Channel in small boats on Friday, government figures have shown. The Home Office said 919 people made the journey in 14 boats, pushing the total for the year to just over 16,000. This is 42% higher than the same point last year and 79% up on the same date in 2023.

The UN migration agency said Wednesday that eight migrants died and 22 others were missing after they were forced off a boat near the Djiboutian coast.

They are also encouraging migrants in the U.S. to return to their home countries on their own. Trump has offered $1,000 and a free commercial flight to people willing to “self deport.” But even with that incentive, immigrants aren’t leaving the country at the pace Trump promised.

The group was trapped on the platform for three days, Open Arms said. One of the migrants gave birth to a boy, while another woman had given birth days before.

The Department of Homeland Security is emailing notifications to individuals who entered the U.S. under the CHNV parole program, established in 2022.

A private prison in Kansas could soon be holding migrants as part of President Trump’s promise of mass deportations for those living in the U.S. illegally. (AP Video: Nick Imgram)