US assessments find crime in parts of Latin America comparable to some American cities, despite travel warnings

By Maryam Ashalem de Andres

ISTANBUL (AA) - The US State Department has provided asylum officers with internal assessments suggesting that violent crime in Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador is no worse than in some US cities, despite publicly warning Americans about security risks in parts of the same countries, CNN reported Wednesday.

The documents compare crime rates in the four Latin American countries with those in cities including Baltimore, Houston and Memphis.

CNN reported that the documents place less emphasis on human rights abuses, kidnappings and extortion than previous assessments.

Asylum seekers must prove they face persecution at home, with the assessments potentially affecting their eligibility for protection and relocation.

The assessments downplay the dangers posed by criminal groups and weak local institutions, marking a significant shift from previous evaluations despite limited changes on the ground, said Andrew Selee, president of the Migration Policy Institute.

The documents also state that Honduran police are generally willing and able to respond to requests for assistance.

Selee said the assessment overlooked alleged police links to organized crime and the risks of relocating. The State Department said regional experts prepared and reviewed the reports to help US immigration authorities assess asylum claims.

The assessments come as the State Department's annual human rights report has been delayed, leaving officers with alternative information on conditions in applicants' home countries.

Asylum denials reached 94% of cases in June compared with about 50% two years earlier, according to data from Syracuse University's Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse cited by CNN.

Trump administration officials have said that travel warnings are intended to inform US citizens about risks abroad and do not necessarily reflect the level of danger faced by people living in those countries.

Mariam Ashalem De Andres