Temporary victory for the state of Texas: A judge prevents federal agents from cutting the barbed wire on the border

A federal judge sided with Texas by ruling this Monday that the Biden Administration will not be able to continue cutting the barbed wire of the southern border of Texas, which functions as a border barrier to prevent the entry of illegal immigrants, at least until the case is thoroughly reviewed.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit last week arguing that federal officials were destroying state property to allow foreigners to enter the country illegally.

In response to that action, Judge Alia Moses of the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas decided to issue a temporary order prohibiting the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) from continuing the "degradation and manipulation" of the fence along the Rio Grande.

The judge explained that the only exceptions to the order would be in cases of medical emergencies that "mostly likely results in serious bodily injury or death to a person" or in the event that there are no boats or other "life-saving apparatus available" before reaching the wire barrier.

Moses insisted that the matter be discussed further during a hearing and asked the parties involved in the case to present their evidence on November 7. However, he said Texas is "likely to succeed" in its lawsuit.

DHS has insisted that border agents "have a responsibility under federal law" to protect immigrants from injury. But the Texas lawsuit goes further, pointing out that the Biden Administration is not only illegally destroying property of the State of Texas but is also disrupting efforts to deter the illegal entry of immigrants.

"Federal agents have developed and implemented a practice of destroying Texas's concertina wire to encourage, induce, and assist thousands of aliens to illegally cross the Rio Grande and enter Texas. Federal agents in some cases attempted to ease aliens' ability to illegally climb up the riverbank into Texas by attaching ropes or cables to the back of pickup trucks," Paxton said in his lawsuit, recalling that Texas has the sovereign right to build border barriers.

Record flow of illegal immigration

During fiscal year 2023, the country has experienced an unprecedented record in the arrival of illegal immigrants. According to the Customs and Border Protection Agency (CBP), more than three million people entered the country irregularly through its borders, exceeding the figure of the previous year by half a million. This record flow of asylum seekers and an increase in apprehensions of terrorism suspects pose significant immigration and border security challenges.