Mexican Soldiers Hold an American Police Officer at Gunpoint…in Arizona (Updated: Just an Accident? Color me Unconvinced.)
I would think that this should be a bigger story today:
A U.S. Border Patrol agent was held at gunpoint Sunday night by members of the Mexican military who had crossed the border into Arizona, but the soldiers returned to Mexico without incident when backup agents responded to assist.
Agents assigned to the Border Patrol station at Ajo, Ariz., said the Mexican soldiers crossed the international border in an isolated area about 100 miles southwest of Tucson and pointed rifles at the agent, who was not identified.
When you strip the story down to its basics, what you have is an armed incursion by uniformed members of a legitimate army into another sovereign nation that resulted in the capture, albeit briefly, of someone who is not a soldier. Wars have been started over incidents like this and what the Mexican soldiers did violated at least three rules of war, as best I can tell.
The thing is, this isn’t the first time it’s happened. Hostile incursions by the Mexican Army have become so numerous and dangerous that local Sheriffs and Border Patrol agents are fairly screaming for help and predicting that, in time, one of our police officers is going to be killed. At least one Border Patrol agent and some police officers have been shot at by Mexican soldiers using some pretty serious firepower.
That certainly deserves our attention. At the very least, someone should be pressing the State Department to explain what, exactly they are doing to stop it. From the looks of the quotes in the article, they are either ignorant of what is going on or they just don’t care all that much. That’s unacceptable to me, and I suspect to an awful lot of Americans (once they found out what was going on, that is).
More updates, including a pretty big “maybe it was a mistake” note after the jump.
UPDATE: See-Dubya is wondering where the blog commentary is on this. I’m wondering that myself.
UPDATE 2: Dan Riehl points to another Reuters article that adds some more details and basically says that it was an accidental incursion.
At the risk of sounding paranoid, of course the Mexicans would say it’s accidental. They’re not very likely to say “Why, yes. Our soldiers did invade the United States and hold a police officer at gunpoint. Is there a problem?”.
The thing is, if this were a rare occurrence, I’d be willing to give the Mexican military the benefit of the doubt but it’s not. According to the original article, there have been 200 incursions confirmed since 1996, which averages out to about one every three weeks or almost one and a half every month until now. This article says that there have been 42 since October, 2007 which averages out to about one a week. That put it squarely in “really darned common” territory.
Let me also point out that they held the officer at gunpoint for about four minutes, even while he was repeating in English and Spanish that he was a Border Patrol agent. It’s also a pretty good guess that he was in uniform, so it’s not like he could be mistaken for some everyday civilian.
Color me extremely skeptical of the official story.
Other Posts of Interest:
- Obama: Police Officers are Terrorists
- Halt, Illegal Immigrant!
- Another Chance for McCainiacs to Earn Valuable Straight-Talking Points!
Category: Our Melting Pot
Isn't this an invasion, an act of war? Read the "Washington Times" item about truckloads of pot being protected by Mexican Soldiers:
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2008/aug/06/s…
for people whom want to change the world, past in the 1959's to 1961 year, the American expresident he were all over at the Mexican duties and politics, the Mexicans ever warring with them communist talking, and as arguing, the American expresident he said some time in the future the American soldiers them are going to take the Mexican country, under military power, because the American expresident 1957’s 1961's he believe that the Mexican doesn’t need any help, but them self to work in them own land, the American expresident, he said he want to take the Mexican country, to view place by place, under and over the Mexican ground, to find, where it is the worries, them can be many tings, even any ting, he said some day the Americans soldiers them are going to take the Mexican country, except he said them start to talk about communism how late he is going to be almost out his presidential period from 1957 to 1961, the American expresident 1957 to 1961, he argue something as for the next Cumming unknown expresident 1961 to 1965, he said it may be he is going to do something at the Mexicans because, the Mexicans them are worrying how much as becoming a communist country, many person believe that the next coming expresident 1961 to 1963, he gave the hand to the Mexicans. “ Others believe Or the Mexicans them took the American expresident hand 1963, with German power, to stole the American country “ ., how much as the Americans them were communist, the deal it were to kill the Mexican country same in the 1959’s , now there have to be, the chance for another next fine good American president, to make to the Mexicans to pay for them much them stolid to the American country, as the Mexicans under communisms power, this is for people whom want to change the world.-