US transfers federal land on Mexican border to Army to prevent crossings

PHOTO CAPTION: Illustrative photo — The border wall is seen in the background as U.S. Army soldiers install concertina wire along the United States-Mexico border in Hidalgo, Texas, November 8, 2018. REUTERS/Adrees Latif

(Reuters) -The Trump administration announced an emergency transfer of nearly 110,000 acres of federal land along the U.S.-Mexico border to the Army to help prevent illegal immigration, the Interior Department said on Tuesday.

The move is part of President Donald Trump's sweeping immigration crackdown. He declared illegal immigration a national emergency in January and tasked the U.S. military with aiding in border security.

The land, which crosses Hidalgo, Luna and Dona Ana counties in New Mexico, will be transferred to the Department of the Army for three years, the agency said, allowing for patrols by federal personnel and construction of infrastructure to prevent illegal crossings. 

The transfer will help curb drug and human trafficking and migrant smuggling, but is also aimed at protecting ecologically sensitive areas that can be harmed by foot traffic, it said.

This is not the first time Trump has made such a move. In 2019, during his first term as president, the Interior Department made a similar transfer of 560 acres along the southern border to the Army to build a wall.

The agency said some of the lands are essential to communities in the area, and would work with them to protect grazing and mining. 

 (Reporting by Nichola Groom; Editing by Alistair Bell and Deepa Babington)