Military deploys hundreds of soldiers to U.S. southern border

The United States has sent hundreds of soldiers to Texas’ Rio Grande Valley over the past few days to strengthen the southern border, local media report. U.S. officials say the movement is in response to signs of elevated activity from Mexican drug cartels, according to the Associated Press. Edinburg, Texas, resident Scott Nicol posted on Facebook several videos showing military helicopters passing over his house.

Did a specific event prompt the troop surge? Officials told NewsNation that the surge of roughly 500 troops comes after someone in Mexico shot at Coast Guard personnel who were patrolling the Rio Grande in Starr County late last month. Coast Guard personnel reportedly returned fire, but no injuries were reported.

In an Oct. 2 press release, U.S. Northern Command said the Joint Task Force–Southern Border was announcing Operation Unified Resolve, an ongoing effort to rapidly reinforce U.S. forces and federal partners in the Rio Grande Valley. Hundreds of service members were repositioned to the Rio Grande Valley to strengthen border security, improve response time, and support federal law enforcement operating along the Rio Grande, according to the release.

The U.S. Border Patrol Rio Grande Valley Sector recently posted a video to its Facebook page warning, “Never touch America’s boats.” The post warned cartels that any threat to border patrol or its partners would be met with overwhelming force.