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A U.S. Navy destroyer, designed to intercept ballistic missiles, has been deployed to the southern border as part of President Trump's push to seal the border and crack down on immigration, defense officials said.

The USS Gravely set sail on Saturday from Naval Weapons Station Yorktown in Virginia. The warship previously 

 in the Middle East, where it was responsible for shooting down missiles fired by Houthi rebels in the Red Sea. 

Now, it will help assist U.S. Northern Command in its mission to "protect the United States' territorial integrity, sovereignty, and security," Gen. Gregory Guillot, who oversees U.S. Northern Command, said in a 

is the Defense Department's operation lead in using military forces to tighten border security.

The dispatch of the Gravely is the latest move under Trump's executive order from January 

It's in addition to the thousands of active-duty troops ordered to the U.S.-Mexico border. As of last Tuesday, about 

 had been deployed or were scheduled to deploy there, according to U.S. Northern Command. In recent weeks, the Trump administration has also been developing plans to 

 on U.S. military bases around the country. 

Defense officials did not clarify where exactly the Gravely will travel to, except to say it will operate in both domestic and international waters. 

More generally, U.S. Northern Command's area of responsibility includes "the continental United States, Alaska, Canada, Mexico and the surrounding water out to approximately 500 nautical miles," the military headquarters' website 

. It also includes the Straits of Florida, parts of the Bahamas, the Caribbean region, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and the Gulf of Mexico, which Trump renamed the 

The ship will carry members of a U.S. Coast Guard Law Enforcement Detachment. Defense officials said the Navy destroyer will be part of law enforcement missions including "maritime related terrorism, weapons proliferation, transnational crime, piracy, environmental destruction, and illegal seaborne immigration." 

At 509 feet long and capable of holding over 300 crew members, the 

 is considered larger than any Coast Guard vessels.

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Juliana Kim

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Capable of holding over 300 crew members and larger than any Coast Guard vessel, the USS Gravely has been assigned to help tighten border security, operating in both domestic and international waters.

Navy warship is sent to the southern border to carry out Trump’s immigration plans

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