Texas Governor Greg Abbott has agreed to this measure, while the Department of Defence has not yet approved the request, which was made last week, according to CNN.
"Supplemental holding support is requested for CBP holding facilities located at Donna and Tornillo, Texas ... these holding facilities will be owned, operated, and managed by CBP", Pentagon spokesman Maj. Chris Mitchell told CNN.
Customs and Border Protection has been facing backlash after reports emerged about migrants, including children, being kept in poor conditions with inadequate food, water and sanitary supplies while in the agency's custody in Texas. On 1 July, Democratic members of the US Congress visited two Texas border facilities and later expressed outrage over the worsening humanitarian crisis there.
#Mexico detains over 200 migrants from Central America en route to US – authorities https://t.co/4L08xwSO4J pic.twitter.com/EJwPHrdGaf
— Sputnik (@SputnikInt) July 9, 2019
In June, US President Donald Trump announced that the United States and Mexico had reached a deal, under which Washington would abandon earlier plans to impose tariffs on Mexican goods in a bid to stop the migrant influx. The deal stipulates that Mexico will deploy its National Guard to its southern border and will work to dismantle human smuggling networks.
Trump has repeatedly expressed concern over the situation with migrant detention centres, calling it terrible. He also put the blame on the Democrats and his predecessor, Barack Obama. On 27 June, the US Congress passed a $4.6 billion humanitarian aid package to address the crisis on the United States’ border with Mexico. Last week, the president signed the legislation.
