Texas Razor Wire Breached By Migrants

A group of migrants cut through the razor wire barrier installed at the Texas-Mexico border before running towards the wall, in the latest breach of Texas Governor Greg Abbott's new defensive line.

More than 10 migrants could be seen running towards the metal wall after using bolt cutters to breach the first line of defense, according to videos posted on X, formerly Twitter.

Bill Melugin, a Fox News reporter who reposted the video, said it showed a "group of illegal aliens using bolt cutters to break through Texas razor wire in El Paso, then surge through the small gap to run towards the border wall."

Newsweek has not independently verified the video which shows troopers from the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) responding to the incident, halting a number of the migrants on the other side of the razor wire, forcing them to disperse. It is unclear whether the migrants who made it through managed to enter the U.S. or were apprehended by the authorities.

Newsweek has contacted the Texas DPS for comment outside of normal working hours.

Officers could later be seen inspecting the breach in the barrier, retrieving the bolt cutters and delivering what appears to be additional wire to fix the gap.

It is the latest in a series of breaches of the Texas border in recent months. The DPS announced on Wednesday that it had arrested 214 illegal migrants on state rioting charges, a class B misdemeanor, in connection with an incident in El Paso last month.

Dozens of migrants were seen ripping down the razor wire barrier, before charging past Texas National Guardsmen towards the border wall near Gate 36.

In addition, nine people are facing felony rioting charges following the incident, seven of whom are currently in custody in El Paso County Jail.

The DPS said the group of migrants was made up of adult males and females from Venezuela, Guatemala, Ecuador, Colombia, Cuba, Nicaragua, Honduras and El Salvador. They will all be held until they can be taken by the U.S. Immigration Customs and Enforcement (ICE).

Following the incident, Abbott said on X that the DPS was "instructed to arrest every illegal immigrant involved for criminal trespass and destruction of property."

The Texas governor said that hundreds of additional National Guard troops had been sent to El Paso to defend the border and that the state had redoubled its efforts to install razor wire barriers along its border.

Encounters at the southwest land border with Texas totaled 84,291 in February, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection data, up from 76,557 in January. While there was a sharp drop from the 158,220 encounters recorded in December, it remains among the highest rates in the country.

El Paso has become one of many melting points along the Texas border in recent months, as Governor Abbott battles with the federal government over how to handle illegal migration.

Tensions surged between Texan authorities and the Biden administration on January 22 when the Supreme Court ruled that federal agents can remove razor wire placed along the border on Abbott's orders.

Abbott hopes to implement Senate Bill 4, which would allow local and state law enforcement to arrest, detain and remove individuals suspected of entering Texas illegally. The U.S. Supreme Court gave Texas the green light to enact the law on March 19, but it was blocked by the 5th Circuit of Appeals several hours later. A final ruling on the bill is still outstanding.