{"id":36007,"date":"2018-11-28T17:07:44","date_gmt":"2018-11-28T17:07:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/uncategorized\/2018\/11\/28\/border-troops-to-deploy-through-christmas-reports\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T05:41:37","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T05:41:37","slug":"border-troops-to-deploy-through-christmas-reports","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/your-military\/2018\/11\/28\/border-troops-to-deploy-through-christmas-reports\/","title":{"rendered":"Troops may spend Christmas on US-Mexico border"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Many of the 5,600 active-duty forces deployed to the U.S.-Mexico border may not be home in time for Christmas, NPR is reporting<\/a>, citing defense officials.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The media outlet reports the Pentagon will extend those troops, who were to come home by Dec. 15<\/a>, through January, citing the surge of as many as 5,000 migrants now at the Tijuana checkpoint.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Defense Secretary Jim Mattis told reporters Monday that the Pentagon was working daily with the Department of Homeland Security on what the agency needs at the border. When asked if DoD had received a request for an extension, Mattis initially replied one was under consideration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe ports of entry I think are pretty much done,” Mattis said. “There\u2019s a little on the flanks of a couple of them we are still working on. So we\u2019ll have to see if the request extends further.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou haven\u2019t received one yet?\u201d A reporter asked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey\u2019re working on it right now,\u201d Mattis said. He later clarified DoD was working the overall needs at the border, however a defense official later confirmed that while no specific extension request has been received, the outlines of what one would contain was being worked at staff levels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mattis has previously hinted that an extension may be coming. In a briefing with reporters, Mattis was asked if the deployed active duty forces would be home by the 15th.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat\u2019ll be mission-dependent, situation-dependent if they need to be extended,\u201d Mattis said the day before Thanksgiving. \u201cSo some of those troops certainly will be home, I would anticipate they would be. But some troops may not be or some new troops may be assigned to new missions<\/a>. But this is a dynamic situation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t