Asylum seekers from U.S. to Canada surged in July -govt figures

The number of asylum seekers crossing the U.S. border into Canada more than tripled last month, according to Canadian government figures released Thursday.

More than 3,100 people walked across the border in July to file refugee claims, up from 884 in June.

Ninety-six percent of them went to Quebec, where an influx of asylum seekers, primarily Haitians, is sparking a backlash from opposition politicians and anti-immigrant groups in the primarily French-speaking province.

Canada is on track this year to have the most refugee claims in a decade, with 7,500 of the 21,695 refugee claimants crossing the border illegally, according to the government statistics.

(This article has not been edited by DNA's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)