A group of migrants managed to break through a section of a border checkpoint in Texas.
In a video posted on social media, a wave of male migrants is seen pushing past a group of US National Guard soldiers in El Paso, having earlier ripped down razor wire and fences.
Local media reports that the group had been detained on the US side of the Rio Grand before being pushed south of the concertina wire in the middle of the night by troops.
The footage showed the group running towards a section of the border wall where they could be processed by officials.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott, said the state’s National Guard and Department of Public Safety (DPS) is "instructed to arrest every illegal immigrant involved for criminal trespass and destruction of property."
Abbott, a Republican who earlier this month ruled himself out of a candidate for Trump's running mate, added that he has taken a range of actions to discourage crossings, saying President Joe Biden has not adequately secured the border.
About 139,000 migrants have been apprehended in the area around El Paso since October 1 last year according to internal statistics, making it one of the busier stretches of the border.
The Biden administration says that some Texas actions have interfered with immigration enforcement, which has historically been the realm of the federal government.
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Migrants were seen running to the border
Reuters
Meanwhile, Mexico underscored its concern about the potential repercussions of a new law on US-Mexico trade and commercial relations, as well as relations between Mexico and the state.
A new law, known as Senate Bill 4, would make it a state crime to illegally enter or re-enter Texas from a foreign country.
The rule would allow state judges to order that violators leave the United States with prison sentences up to 20 years for those who refuse to comply. It has been blocked by a federal judge and is currently under appeal.
A spokesperson from the Mexican government said: "Mexico is deeply concerned that S.B. 4 will be applied in a discriminatory manner and fears that its enforcement will lead to improper harassment, detention, removal, and criminalization of Mexican citizens and individuals of Latino appearance.
There were reports the razor wire was torn down
Reuters
""If S.B. 4 is ever fully implemented, Mexican citizens, regardless of their immigration status and country of residence, will be rightly afraid to visit Texas, engage in commercial trucking through Texas, or travel on rail through Texas, for work or pleasure, out of concern that they will be subject to unlawful police scrutiny and detention."
Immigration is among the top three concerns for voting-age Americans. President Biden has tried to appeal simultaneously to the Democratic base in favour of protecting asylum seekers while also chasing other voters who want to reduce the number of illegal crossings from Mexico.
Biden has recently toughened his stance, blaming Republicans for opposing additional border security funding and legislation that would grant him new enforcement authority.
Republicans responded saying that the President should reinstate restrictive Trump policies and end new legal entry programs before Congress devotes more money to border security.
