Grassley probes law enforcement on ground, air incursions at southern border

Iowa Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley on Thursday pressed a litany of federal agencies for information on weapons seizures at the southern border amid mounting fears that the porous Mexican frontier may provide a means of entry for hostile actors.

Writing to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Grassley pointed to the ongoing hostilities between Israel and Gaza and the activities of Mexican drug cartels as heightening security concerns.

"It's an absolute fact that our southern border is out of control. Report after report shows a vast influx of illegal immigrants crossing the Mexico-U.S. border and increased violence occurring near U.S. border towns," Grassley stated. "Numerous reports make clear that illegal immigrants have armed themselves with weapons, including suspected cartel members, as they approach and cross the Mexico-U.S. border putting U.S. law enforcement and American lives at risk."

U.S. Customs and Border Protection has documented more than 10,000 drone incursions and 25,000 drone detections in the Rio Grande Valley over the past year, he noted.

"The recent heinous attacks by Hamas terrorists, who used arms and explosive-rigged drones against Israeli civilians, underscores the very real risk that could happen at our southern border and against Americans," he wrote. "Moreover, recent reports warning of the risk that Hamas and Hezbollah fighters could soon attempt to enter the U.S. through Mexico highlights that the need to immediately secure our southern border is paramount."

The Iowa lawmaker asked the agencies to provide information on the number and nature of both drone incursions at the border and the arrivals of armed border crossers into the country.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter.