Newly released data reveals a concerning surge in apprehensions of individuals listed on the FBI's terror watchlist at the southern border. As of May's end, Border Patrol has detained 125 such individuals since the fiscal year commenced in October, exceeding the previous record of 98 encounters in FY 2022. This marks a significant escalation from just 15 arrests in FY 2021 and a mere three in FY 2020. Notably, no such apprehensions occurred at the southern border between ports of entry in FY 2019.
While encounters with individuals on the watchlist at ports of entry generally outnumber those between ports, the recent surge raises significant concerns. Fiscal year 2023 has seen 337 encounters at both northern and southern ports, compared to 380 in FY 2022 and 157 in FY 2021. The Terrorist Screening Dataset (TSDS), commonly referred to as the terror watchlist, comprises sensitive information on suspected terrorists and potential threats to the United States, including known associates of listed individuals.
Although these numbers are comparatively small against the millions of migrant encounters at the border in recent years, they have sparked alarm among Republicans and former border officials. The concern stems from the potential for individuals on the terror watchlist to evade Border Patrol, particularly given the estimated 599,000 illegal immigrants who eluded apprehension in FY 2022, following over 390,000 in FY 2021.
Overall, May witnessed 204,561 migrant encounters at the southern border, both at and between ports of entry, bringing the fiscal year's total to 1.6 million. This contrasts with nearly 2.4 million encounters in FY 2022 and over 1.7 million in FY 2021. This data coincides with the announced retirement of DHS Deputy Secretary John Tien, adding to the agency's recent high-profile departures, including the Border Patrol chief and acting ICE Director.
