The Pentagon announced Wednesday the creation of a new military buffer zone in Texas aimed at bolstering security along the US-Mexico border, even as illegal border crossings continue to decline to historic lows.
The new National Defense Area (NDA) will cover 250 miles along the Rio Grande River and will be marked by temporary barriers and signage. According to a press release from the US Air Force, the zone will be operated by personnel from Joint Task Force–Southern Border under the direction of US Northern Command (NORTHCOM). While the personnel will not engage in law enforcement, they will have the authority to detain illegal border crossers and transfer them to Border Patrol custody.
The land for the zone was transferred from the International Boundary and Water Commission and will now fall under the administration of Joint Base San Antonio.
This marks the latest in a series of such military zones. A 170-mile NDA was established in Arizona in April, followed by a 63-mile zone in West Texas in May. With the latest addition, over 480 miles of the southern border are now covered by active National Defense Areas.
“These efforts reflect USNORTHCOM’s ongoing mission as the DoD’s operational lead for homeland defense, ensuring the territorial integrity of the United States’ southern border,” the Air Force said in its statement.
ABC News reported that an additional 100-mile NDA will be set up in Arizona.
Despite the ramped-up security posture, illegal border activity has sharply declined. According to Fox News, there were just 5,414 apprehensions between June 1 and June 22, with the El Paso sector seeing the most activity. During the same period, there were only 986 known “gotaways,” the lowest number on record.
The number of gotaways is now an average of 46 per day, far below the peak of 1,833 per day reported in 2023 under the previous administration.
