US Creates New Military Zone Along Southern Border

The military presence extends east of New Mexico into El Paso, Texas.

An American and Texas flag are seen flying in front of the skyline of El Paso and Ciudad Juarez in El Paso, Texas, on Sept. 23, 2022. Joe Raedle/Getty Images

The United States on Thursday announced the creation of a second military zone along its southern border with Mexico, further expanding the military’s presence in the area.

Dubbed the “Texas National Defense Area,” and announced late on May 1, it is a 63-mile stretch that runs east from the Texas-New Mexico state line in El Paso.

The zone’s creation follows the creation in April of a first military zone along a 60-foot-wide corridor called the Roosevelt Reservation. The corridor runs along the border lands of New Mexico, Arizona, and California.

Nearly 110,000 acres of federal land along the border were transferred from the Department of the Interior to the Army on April 15, granting military control in the zone for three years.

According to court documents filed on April 28, the United States has initiated criminal prosecutions for 28 illegal immigrants for allegedly crossing into the new military zone, charging them with “violations of security regulations,” and entering a “restricted and controlled” New Mexico national defense area on top of illegal entry.

“Any illegal attempting to enter that zone is entering a military base—a federal, protected area,” Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said in a video message on April 25 during a visit to the area. “You will be detained. You will be interdicted by U.S. troops and Border Patrol working together.”

“If you have attempted to evade, that’s evading law enforcement, just like you would any other military base,” he added. “You add up the charges of what you can be charged with misdemeanors and felonies, you can be looking at up to 10 years in prison when prosecuted.”

The U.S. Attorney’s Office said that 82 illegal immigrants have been charged with crossing into the New Mexico military zone. The federal government announced in March that the number of illegal immigrant crossings had dropped to the lowest level ever recorded.

New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham has opposed the operation, calling it a “deportation buffer zone” in her state, and “a waste of resources and military personnel, especially when migrant crossings are at the lowest in decades.”

Meanwhile, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, who continued to send his state’s National Guard to secure the border during the Biden administration, has welcomed the federal assistance. Posting pictures of razor wire barriers on May 1, he said in a Facebook post, “Texas continues to work with the Trump Administration to stop illegal immigration.”

Around 11,900 troops are stationed on the border. According to the Department of Defense, U.S. Customs and Border Protection retains jurisdiction over illegal border crossings. Troops detain and hand over illegal immigrants to the U.S. Border Patrol.

Aldgra Fredly and Reuters contributed to this report.