Latest news with #USNorthernCommand
CNN
3 days ago
- Politics
- CNN
US military expected to announce two new zones where service members can detain migrants on southern border, officials say
The US Navy and Air Force are expected to announce the establishment of two additional military zones along the US southern border this week, three US officials told CNN. The zones, which are known as National Defense Areas, will be attached to Joint Base San Antonio, Texas, and Marine Corps Air Station, Yuma, the officials said. The NDA around Joint Base San Antonio will include roughly 250 miles of the Rio Grande River, two of the officials added. The NDA near MCAS Yuma will extend over 100 miles along the border, the third official said. The new zones will bring the total count up to four, after the establishment of the Texas National Defense Area attached to Fort Bliss, Texas, in May, and the New Mexico National Defense Area attached to Fort Huachuca, Arizona, in April. 'The establishment of a second National Defense Area increases our operational reach and effectiveness in denying illegal activity along the southern border,' US Northern Command commander Gen. Gregory Guillot said after the establishment of the Texas National Defense Area. 'This is the second area in which Joint Task Force – Southern Border service members who are already detecting and monitoring through stationary positions and mobile patrols nearby can now temporarily detain trespassers until they are transferred to an appropriate law enforcement entity.' US troops are prohibited from conducting law enforcement activities by the Posse Comitatus Act. But the defense areas are treated as extensions of military installations, allowing service members to temporarily detain migrants who are trespassing before handing them off to law enforcement, conduct cursory searches of trespassers, and conduct crowd-control measures. Democratic lawmakers have criticized the defense areas as a way to side-step the act. Sen. Jack Reed, the ranking member of the Senates Armed Services Committee, said last month that the NDAs 'evade the long-standing protections of the Posse Comitatus Act by allowing military forces to act as de facto border police, detaining migrants until they can be transferred to Customs and Border Protection.' 'In the Administration's telling, this approach permits military involvement in immigration control without invoking the Insurrection Act of 1807,' Reed said. 'This is both unprecedented and a legal fiction. Sen. Martin Heinrich of New Mexico also raised concerns to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth last month that the Trump administration is 'bypassing due process for individuals who either intentionally or unintentionally enter this newly restricted area.' Service members began directly detaining migrants in June. The Department of Justice only just got its first convictions related to trespassing in the NDAs this month. According to the Justice Department, two individuals pleaded guilty to charges including trespassing into the New Mexico National Defense Area. In both cases, the individuals were apprehended by Border Patrol agents. Dozens of national security charges against migrants were dropped by a judge in New Mexico earlier this month after they found little evidence that the migrants knew about the defense areas. The establishment of the new defense areas comes as over 4,000 National Guard troops and roughly 700 active duty Marines are currently mobilized in the Los Angeles area, in response to protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions.
Bloomberg
18-06-2025
- Politics
- Bloomberg
Trump Deploys 2,000 More National Guard Troops to Los Angeles
The Trump administration activated 2,000 additional National Guard soldiers in California, even as the state's governor clashes with the White House over deploying troops. US Northern Command said in a statement Wednesday that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is directing the troops to protect federal functions, personnel and property in Los Angeles. US Northern Command said the members will not conduct law enforcement, and are completing training on 'de-escalation, crowd controls and use of the standing rules for use of force' ahead of joining other soldiers.
CBS News
12-06-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Marine Corps battalion finish L.A. protests training, ready for deployment by Friday
The Marine Corps battalion dispatched to Southern California has finished its training for the Los Angeles protests and could be deployed by Friday, according to the Department of Defense. The 700 Marines based out of Twentynine Palms, which is about 140 miles away from L.A., will join the roughly 4,100 California National Guard soldiers protecting federal buildings and personnel during the anti-ICE protests that started on June 6, the U.S. Northern Command wrote in a statement Wednesday night. "They can and have accompanied ICE on missions, but they are not a part of the operations. Title 10 forces do not do law enforcement functions. They protect; they don't participate," U.S. Northern Command wrote. Title 10 of the United States Code allows the president to federalize the National Guard. However, the Posse Comitatus Act, a 19th-century law, bars the military from participating in civil law enforcement, unless the president invokes the Insurrection Act. As a result, the National Guard soldiers and Marines will temporarily detain an individual until transferring custody to civilian law enforcement personnel, according to U.S. Northern Command. When asked if he would invoke the Insurrection Act on Tuesday Mr. Trump said: ""If there's an insurrection, I would certainly invoke it. We'll see." In an interview with CBS News, L.A. Police Chief Jim McDonnell stated the city did not need the National Guard's help. "We don't need the National Guard, and they are not here to help us right now," McDonnell said Wednesday on "CBS Mornings." They are here to facilitate what the federal agencies are doing on the immigration front." President Trump mobilized the approximately 5,800 troops, dubbed Task Force 51, a day after the protests began. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said Monday that the 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division, is "being deployed to Los Angeles to restore order." A top Pentagon official testified to Congress that the estimated cost of deploying the National Guard and the Marines is roughly $134 million. Mr. Trump said while walking on the red carpet of a Les Misérables on Wednesday night that the task force prevented L.A. from burning to the ground. "If we weren't there and didn't bring in the National Guard and the Marines, you have a city that is burning to the ground," the president said. Gov. Gavin Newsom and other local officials strongly opposed the move to federalize the California National Guard and deploy Marines to L.A. County. In a 28-page federal court filing, California Attorney General Rob Bonta asked a judge for a temporary restraining order by 1 p.m. local time Tuesday to "prevent the use of federalized National Guard and active duty Marines for law enforcement purposes on the streets of a civilian city." Following the filing and after Mayor Karen Bass implemented a curfew for downtown L.A., Newsom delivered a statewide address to denounce the Trump administration, calling the deployment of troops a "brazen abuse of power" that escalated the protests. "By night, several dozen lawbreakers became violent and destructive, they vandalized property, they tried to assault police officers," Newsom said. "This situation was winding down and was concentrated in just a few square blocks downtown. But that, that's not what Donald Trump wanted." In a post on his Truth Social platform, Mr. Trump said Wednesday morning that, "The INCOMPETENT Governor of California was unable to provide protection in a timely manner when our Ice Officers, GREAT Patriots they are, were attacked by an out of control mob of agitators, troublemakers, and/or insurrectionists. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!"
Bloomberg
11-06-2025
- Politics
- Bloomberg
Marines Arrive in LA as Tensions Grow Over Immigration Raids
Marines deployed by President Donald Trump arrived in the Los Angeles area with orders to protect federal property and officers, as the city is gripped by tensions over anti-deportation protests. Seven hundred troops from the 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines have made it to the greater LA area, a spokesperson for the US Northern Command said, without disclosing their specific location. They will join about 2,100 members of the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team who are also in the area, including in Paramount and Compton, according to the spokesperson.
AU Financial Review
10-06-2025
- Politics
- AU Financial Review
Marines arrive in LA after police chief gives warning
Marines deployed by President Donald Trump arrived in the Los Angeles area after the city's police chief warned of significant challenges to law enforcement if it was done without co-ordination with his department. Seven hundred troops from the 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines have made it to the greater LA area, a spokesperson for the US Northern Command said, without disclosing their specific location or duties. They will join about 2100 members of the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team who are also on location in the area, including in Paramount and Compton, according to the spokesperson.
