'Beautiful' moments as Mexican migrants meet families on US border

CIUDAD JUÁREZ: Hundreds of Mexican migrants to the United States have reunited with their families for a few fleeting moments as part of the “hugs not walls” meetup on the US-Mexico border.

People shed tears on a bridge linking Mexico’s Ciudad Juarez with El Paso in the United States, flinging their arms around relatives they hadn’t seen for years and walking slowly along together.

Mexican migrants families US border — Mexican families separated by the border wall are reunited for 3hree minutes in the 7th edition of the Hugs Not Walls event organized by the Border Network for Human Rights, in front of the border wall on the Rio Grande in Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua state, Mexico on October 26, 2019. AFP

The bridge was made neutral territory for four hours during the event, held for the seventh time, to allow undocumented migrants to the US to see their Mexican families.

“I have no words to describe this, it’s something very beautiful, something that was needed,” 20-year-old Brandon told AFP as he wiped tears from his face.

He said he was meeting his parents and 5 sisters who live in Mexico and who he hadn’t seen for 5 years.

Organized by the Border Network for Human Rights, the event saw 260 families reunite with their loved ones.