US: Pentagon approves request to house migrant minors in Texas

US officials are scrambling to house and process an increase in unaccompanied minors crossing the southern border.

The Pentagon has approved a request to house unaccompanied migrant children at two US military facilities in the southern state of Texas, amid a sharp rise in migrants arriving at the border. The request comes as President Joe Biden has faced a burgeoning migration challenge along the US border with Mexico, which he has blamed on “the somewhat draconian” policies of his Republican predecessor, Donald Trump. Two US officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told Reuters news agency that the request from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) had been to house up to 5,000 children at Fort Bliss and another 300 at the other base, though it was not immediately clear if the request had been approved in full.