Judge rules border patrol can’t cut Texas razor wire except for urgent medical aid

Migrants from Venezuela climb over razor wire after crossing the Rio Grande river at the US-Mexico border in Eagle Pass, Texas, on 24 September. Photograph: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP/Getty Images

A federal judge has ordered border patrol agents not to interfere with razor wire that the state of Texas installed at a busy crossing for migrants on the US-Mexico border, ruling that the barrier can only be cut to provide aid during medical emergencies.

The temporary restraining order signed by US district judge Alia Moses allows federal agents to cut the wire only in order to “provide emergency medical aid” to migrants, some of whom have been gashed or snagged by the wire after crossing the Rio Grande seeking to enter Texas.