Thousands of US troops head to Mexico border after Trump order

According to informed officials, thousands of additional active-duty U.S. military personnel are being deployed to the southern border between the United States and Mexico, two days after President Donald Trump ordered an increase in the military presence there. Currently, approximately 2,200 active-duty troops are stationed in the border region as part of Joint Task Force-North, the U.S. Northern Command’s border mission force based in El Paso, Texas.

These troops primarily provide support to U.S. Customs and Border Protection, performing logistical and administrative tasks such as data entry, detection and monitoring, and vehicle maintenance. According to sources, the additional active-duty troops being sent to the border this week will perform similar tasks and are expected to be integrated into Joint Task Force-North, bolstering its strength. They will also assist in maintaining the operational readiness of border patrol, provide support at command and control centers, and offer more intelligence specialists to assess threats and migration flows.

Furthermore, these troops are expected to enhance air power and assist in air operations. One official stated that more active-duty troops are expected to be deployed to the border in the coming weeks and months, with the initial deployments laying the groundwork for a larger military presence. It is not yet clear whether these troops will be armed, but all active-duty personnel are prohibited from performing any law enforcement duties, such as making arrests, drug interdiction, or interacting with migrants, except to assist them to and from different migrant facilities.

Under a century-old law called the Posse Comitatus Act, active-duty U.S. military personnel are not authorized to perform law enforcement duties domestically. Other laws and regulations further clarify that troops are prohibited from engaging in activities such as arrests and searches. However, President Trump issued an executive order on Monday stating that he will decide within 90 days whether to invoke the Insurrection Act at the U.S.-Mexico border, which would allow him to use active-duty troops for law enforcement within the country. Federal resources at the southern border have been strained for years due to the influx of migrants.

Homeland Security officials have stated that the number of migrants crossing the southern border recently has decreased, with currently 1,100 to 1,300 migrants illegally crossing each day. Sources expect that by increasing Pentagon personnel, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which has been providing assistance at the border, will be able to return inland and focus on arresting undocumented immigrants already within the United States.