MAMBO – Monitoring and Analysis
Monitoring and Analysis of Military and Border Operations (MAMBO)
Monitoring and Analysis of Military and Border Operations (MAMBO) is a project launched by members of About Face to monitor military and federal deployments involved in anti-migrant operations at the U.S. southern border. We believe this information helps expose the scale and scope of military involvement in immigration enforcement, providing transparency where official channels often obscure details. It supports journalists, advocates, and communities in holding agencies accountable, challenging harmful policies, and protecting migrant rights. All information was obtained legally using publicly available sources.
Reports
March 9th, 2026
The United States is experiencing the most significant expansion of domestic federal enforcement posture since the post-9/11 period, distinguished by three concurrent developments: (1) the unprecedented deployment of military and federal law enforcement personnel to American cities for purposes beyond traditional national security; (2) the formal reorientation of the National Defense Strategy to prioritize homeland and hemispheric operations, including explicit support for deportation logistics; and (3) the rapid scaling of surveillance technologies — many with direct lineage to overseas military and intelligence operations — into interior enforcement against civilian populations.
February 2nd, 2026
As of January 31, 2026, the operational environment in Springfield, Clark County, Ohio, exhibits high-intensity indicators of an imminent, militarized interior immigration enforcement operation. With the termination of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitian nationals scheduled for February 3, 2026, federal and state actors are preparing assets for a large-scale containment strategy.
UPDATE: On February 2nd, 2026, federal district court judge Ana C. Reyes issued an injunction indefinitely pausing the suspension of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitian migrants, citing legal errors and racial bias. The administration has signaled that it will appeal to the supreme court.
November 14th, 2025
This report analyzes the developing federal immigration enforcement posture in Charlotte, North Carolina. Based on a synthesis of open-source reporting and stakeholder statements, our confidence is Medium-High that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is actively redirecting federal assets to Charlotte for a near-term, high-profile enforcement operation
October 15th, 2025
The scope and focus of the National Guard has expanded from simply securing the border to counter-cartel and now counter-insurrection missions under the guise of protecting ICE agents as they conduct immigration raids in mainly liberal-leaning US cities. The National Guard has been deployed to cities such as Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., with much televised controversy and mixed results. In the background of a highly politicized United States with an erratic administration in power, these National Guard deployments are very likely to continue.
Border Operations Tracking Map
The border operations tracking map contains locations where units, facilities, observation towers, and incidents have been reported or geolocated using imagery. It also describes locations along the border that have been militarized through the use of National Defense Areas
Border Deployments Tracker
This table contains information that MAMBO has gathered about specific unit deployment locations, size, and likely function. The time at which the data was collected is also included