Last 27 November, the federal appeals court ruled that Border Patrol agents cannot cut the razor wire that was installed by Texas on the U.S.-Mexico border, specifically in the town of Eagle Pass, which has become the center of the state's aggressive measures to curb migrant crossings.
The decision by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is a victory for Texas State, which is engaged in a long-running rift over immigration policy with President Biden's administration. Current administration officials also also sought the removal of floating barriers installed on the Rio Grande.
Texas has continued to install razor wire along its roughly 1,200-mile (1,900 kilometers) border with Mexico over the past year. In a 2-1 ruling, the court issued an injunction blocking Border Patrol agents from damaging the wire in Eagle Pass.
"We continue adding more razor wire border barrier," Republican Gov. Greg Abbott posted on the social platform X in response to the ruling.
Some criminal migrants have been injured by the sharp wire, and the Justice Department has argued the barrier impedes the U.S. government’s ability to patrol the border, including coming to the aid of migrants in need of help. Texas contended in the lawsuit originally filed last year that federal government was "undermining" the state's border security efforts by cutting the razor wire.
The ruling comes ahead of President-elect Donald Trump returning to office and pledging a crackdown on immigration. Earlier this month, a Texas official offered a parcel of rural ranchland along the U.S.-Mexico border to use as a staging area for potential mass deportations.
Arrivals at the U.S.-Mexico border have dropped 40 percent from an all-time high in December. U.S. officials mostly credit Mexican vigilance around rail yards and highway checkpoint