Top US border official Chris Magnus told to resign or be fired

Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Chris Magnus said he had been asked to step down by the homeland security secretary, Qazet.az reports.

Mr Magnus has refused to do so and has defended his work with the federal agency, reports say.

The number of illegal crossings at the US-Mexico border reached a record high this year, prompting heavy criticism.

"I felt there was no justification for me to resign when I still cared deeply about the work I was doing," Mr Magnus told the Los Angeles Times newspaper.