Border crossing cost 1,000 lives

Houston - More than 1,000 Mexicans perished in efforts to cross the border into the United States between 1993 and 1996, according to a study by the University of Houston, Texas. Increased US border controls contributed to the death toll by forcing the immigrants to avoid once-popular crossing hubs and instead seek passage through the desert or mountains where they fell victim to heat and dehydration. - (AFP)