Texas troops among 1,500 activated for U.S. southern border ‘security’

DALLAS – The Dallas Morning News reports that four military police units from Texas are among as many as 1,500 active-duty troops bound for the nation’s southern border to “bolster security,” military leaders said Friday. The movement, announced by the U.S. Northern Command, stems from executive orders signed by President Donald Trump during his first week in office aimed at cracking down on immigration. The command oversees military operations across North America. Those activated in Texas include three units from Fort Cavazos, near Killeen, and one from Fort Bliss, near El Paso. A command spokesperson declined to provide additional information about troop movements.

Those deployed, which includes units from the U.S. Army and the U.S. Marine Corps, will join the nearly 2,500 service members already supporting U.S. Customs and Border Protection personnel overseeing the nearly 2,000-mile U.S.-Mexico border. The additional troops will enhance ”detection and monitoring efforts” and maintain physical barriers. The command has begun a 30-day planning effort to stand up a “multi-domain, and likely multi-component” response, military officials said Thursday in a news release. The total number of troops on the mission may change as units rotate personnel and additional forces may be deployed at a later date, the announcement says.