“Acting Secretary of Defense Pat Shanahan approved Department of Defense assistance to DHS through Sept. 30, 2019. DOD is transitioning its support at the southwestern border from hardening ports of entry to mobile surveillance and detection, as well as concertina wire emplacement between ports of entry,” the statement read.
In late November, US law enforcement and members of a Central American caravan clashed on the border after a group of around 500 of the migrants attempted to storm into the United States, but were thwarted by US authorities with tear gas and rubber bullets.
Trump said during his first address from the Oval Office last week that the United States was facing a humanitarian and security crisis on the border with Mexico. In a tweet on Saturday, he claimed arrests on the border had gone up 240 percent, with 292,000 crimes in Texas in 2011-2018 committed by undocumented migrants.
READ MORE: Backlash as Fox News Host Says Immigrant Caravan Carries Diseases to US
On Monday, the US government shutdown entered day 24 as congressional Democrats and President Donald Trump continue to be at odds on a new spending bill. Trump is asking Congress to approve more than $5 billion for constructing a wall on the border with Mexico as part of the spending bill, while Democrats refuse to provide the funds for a border wall.
READ MORE: Trump Furious Over Dems 'Having Fun' Amid Government Shutdown
