The Defense Department is establishing two additional military zones along the U.S.-Mexico border, in an effort to further crack down on unlawful migrant crossings, a Defense official confirmed to The Hill.
The Pentagon is creating one designated area along Arizona’s border and one in southern Texas, according to The New York Times, which cited two Defense Department officials.
The former will become part of the Marine Corps Air Station in Yuma, and the latter will become a part of Joint Base San Antonio, the Times reported.
A Defense official confirmed the report to The Hill, saying Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth directed the secretaries of the Air Force and Navy “to take necessary action to establish National Defense Areas along the U.S.-Mexico border.”
“DoD’s new jurisdiction over these stretches of land and river will enhance the authority of the Department to secure the U.S. southern border from unlawful entry and to maintain the sovereignty, territorial integrity, and security of the United States,” the official said in a statement.
The two new military zones add to the two others designated by the Pentagon earlier this year — in southern Texas and New Mexico.
In the designated zones, military personnel are authorized to take custody of migrants who illegally cross the border until they are transferred to civilian authorities in the Department of Homeland Security.