U.S. Army Establishes 101km Military Zone Along Mexico-Texas Border Near El Paso

U.S. Army Establishes 101km Military Zone Along Mexico-Texas Border Near El Paso

WASHINGTON, May 2 (Reuters) – The U.S. military has established a second border zone in Texas where troops can temporarily detain migrants or trespassers, following the creation of a similar area in New Mexico last month.

Since taking office, PresidentDonald Trump has intensified immigration enforcement, increasing military presence along the southern border and vowing to deport millions of undocumented immigrants.

In April, the Trump administration

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designated a 170-square-mile (440 square km) area at the base of New Mexico as a “National Defense Area.” Late Thursday, the military announced a new zone—called the “Texas National Defense Area”—spanning 63 miles eastward from the Texas-New Mexico border near El Paso.

While U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) retains primary authority over illegal border crossings, military personnel in these zones are permitted to temporarily detain individuals and then transfer them to CBP or other law enforcement agencies.

To date, 82 migrants have been charged for entering the New Mexico defense zone, according to the state’s U.S. Attorney’s Office. However, all were handled by CBP, not detained by military personnel.

These zones are intended to provide the administration with an alternative to invoking the 1807 Insurrection Act, which allows the president to deploy military forces domestically in cases of civil unrest or similar emergencies.

Approximately 11,900 troops are currently deployed along the southern border. According to government data, migrant apprehensions in March dropped to their lowest recorded level.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott, a Republican, shared photos on Thursday of razor wire being installed at the border, stating that Texas continues to collaborate with the Trump administration to stop illegal immigration.

In contrast, New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham has criticized the initiative, referring to it in a March social media post as a “deportation buffer zone” and “a waste of resources and military personnel.”

On Friday, New Mexico Senator Martin Heinrich’s office expressed concerns about the buffer zone's breadth, noting that in some areas it spans several miles—raising the risk that civilians might enter the area unknowingly.

“It goes far beyond the 60-foot Roosevelt Reservation,” Heinrich’s spokeswoman Caty Payette told Source NM, referencing the narrow federal strip of land that runs along the U.S.-Mexico border.