Texan authorities deployed an additional 700 soldiers, made up of National Guard and Texas Tactical Border Force (TTBF) personnel, to the U.S.-Mexico border at El Paso after migrants were filmed breaking through a border fence.
The deployment took place over the past week after footage recorded by the New York Post on March 21 showed migrants pushing their way past a border fence and National Guard soldiers in El Paso.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott has deployed thousands of National Guard troops to the Texas-Mexico border under Operation Lone Star, a multi-agency state operation launched in 2021. Illegal immigration has become a major political issue across the country with Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, making it one of the main focuses of his campaign for a second White House term.
In a statement sent to the Austin American-Statesman, the Texas Military Department, which runs Operation Lone Star along with the Texas Department of Public Safety (TDPS), confirmed the reinforcements had arrived and were in position.
It said: “The Texas National Guard surged additional personnel and equipment to protect El Paso.
More than 700 National Guard troops surged to El Paso after migrants breached razor wire barrier.
That includes 200 Soldiers of the Texas Tactical Border Force deployed to El Paso this past week.
Mission: Hold the line & deny illegal entry.https://t.co/qQCuNZ07lZ
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) March 30, 2024
“More than 700 additional Soldiers, including 200 Soldiers of the Texas Tactical Border Force (TTBF), have deployed to El Paso throughout the past week.”
Writing on X, formerly Twitter, Abbott commented: “More than 700 National Guard troops surged to El Paso after migrants breached razor wire barrier.
“That includes 200 Soldiers of the Texas Tactical Border Force deployed to El Paso this past week. Mission: Hold the line & deny illegal entry.”
Footage of migrants breaking through border defenses at El Paso on March 21, described as a riot by New York Post reporter Jennie Taer, went viral on social media attracting millions of views on X.
Data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection showed 68,260 irregular migrants were encountered by law enforcement along the Texas-Mexico border in January following 149,806 encounters in December.
Brandon Bell/GETTY
On Thursday broadcaster NewsNation released what it claimed was the text of a TDPS memo to border guards warning some migrants were becoming “more aggressive towards law enforcement” as they attempt to circumvent the border barriers and enter the U.S.”
Speaking to Newsweek, Daniel Miller, president of the secessionist Texas Nationalist Movement, commented: “It’s not surprising that this is happening when the Mexican President is attempting to extort Texas taxpayers over the border crisis. These migrants know there will be no federal consequences for their actions while they continue to be supported and enabled by the Biden administration.”
On March 19, Texas Senate Bill 4, a piece of state legislation signed by Abbott, was put on hold by a federal appeals court just hours after getting a green light from the Supreme Court in a 6-3 verdict. The legislation would allow Texan law enforcement to detain and deport illegal migrants causing controversy as this has typically been seen as a federal responsibility.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.