EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) – Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico soon will be temporarily housing Afghan refugees.
The Secretary of Defense on Friday said Holloman would join military facilities in Texas, Virginia, Wisconsin and New Jersey in supporting Operation Allies Refuge. That includes temporarily housing up to 50,000 Afghans coming into the country under the Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) program, as well as other at-risk citizens of that country.
“We are following through on America’s commitment to vulnerable Afghans and Afghan nationals who have helped us,” Lt. Gen. Brad Webb, commander of Air Education and Training Command, said in a statement. “We are honored to provide the essential support where they and their families can complete processing safely.”
A task force at Holloman — which is near Alamogordo, New Mexico — will provide housing, medical, logistics, and transportation support, the Department of Defense said. The housing will consist of “suitable facilities” which can be temporary or fixed structures.
“We are proud to join Task Force Holloman, U.S. Army North, U.S. Northern Command, and the Department of Defense team, in supporting the State Department and Department of Homeland Security with this mission,” said Col. Ryan Keeney, 49th Wing commander.
The U.S. Northern Command’s Joint Force Land Component Command is the lead operational command for the mission.