WASHINGTON - The total number of U.S.
troops heading to the border with Mexico to help stop a caravan
of migrants could be in the thousands but there is no firm
figure yet, a U.S. official told Reuters on Monday, offering a
much higher estimate than the 800 to 1,000 initially forecast.
The Pentagon declined comment on potential troop numbers,
saying planning was still underway for a mission that aims to
bolster President Donald Trump's efforts to stop Central
American migrants trekking toward the United States.
Last week, U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis authorized the
use of troops and other military resources at the U.S-Mexico
border.
Officials at the time said Mattis' authorization did not
include a specific number of troops, something that would be
determined at a later point.
U.S. officials told Reuters last week that number could be
at least 800 active-duty troops and begin deploying as soon as
Tuesday.
Trump, who campaigned against illegal immigration to win the
2016 U.S. presidential vote, has seized on this caravan in the
run-up to the Nov. 6 mid-term congressional elections, firing up
support for his Republican Party.
Estimates on the size of the caravan vary from around 3,500
to more than double that. Some migrants have abandoned the
journey, deterred by the hardships or the possibility of making
a new life in Mexico. Others joined it in southern
Mexico.