Editing Pancho Villa (section)

===Attack on New Mexico===
{{Main|Battle of Columbus (1916)}}
[[File:Columbus.jpg|thumb|Ruins of [[Columbus, New Mexico]] after being raided by Pancho Villa]]

On 9 March 1916, General Villa ordered nearly 100 Mexican members of his revolutionary group to make a cross-border [[Battle of Columbus (1916)|attack against Columbus, New Mexico]]. Some historians believe that Villa attacked Columbus due to his concern for what Villa believed was American imperialistic interference in Mexican internal affairs.<ref>[https://www.krwg.org/regional/2024-03-19/mexican-president-praises-pancho-villa-for-his-1916-attack-on-columbus-new-mexico-that-killed-18 Mexican President praises Pancho Villa] KRWG.ORG. By Associated Press. March 19, 2024. Retrieved November 3, 2024.</ref>

From a purely military standpoint Villa carried out the raid because he needed more military equipment and supplies in order to continue his fight against Carranza.<ref name=Huachuca/> Many believed the raid was conducted because of the U.S. government's official recognition of the Carranza regime and for the loss of lives in battle due to defective cartridges purchased from the U.S.<ref name=Huachuca/>

They attacked a detachment of the [[13th Cavalry Regiment (United States)]], burned the town, and seized 100 horses and mules and other military supplies. Eighteen Americans and about 80 Villistas were killed.<ref name=Huachuca>{{cite journal |title=Buffalo Soldiers at Huachuca: Villa's Raid on Columbus, New Mexico |url=http://net.lib.byu.edu/estu/wwi/comment/huachuca/HI1-12.htm |journal=Huachuca Illustrated |volume=1 |year=1993 |publisher=Fort Huachuca Museum |access-date=12 January 2009}}</ref><ref name=USWarDept1>{{cite book|author=United States War Dept|title=Annual Reports of the War Department, 1916 |url=https://archive.org/details/annualreportswa110deptgoog |year=1916 |publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office |pages=[https://archive.org/details/annualreportswa110deptgoog/page/n287 278]–279 |chapter=The Raid on Columbus, N. Mex., and the Punitive Expedition}}</ref>

Other attacks in U.S. territory allegedly were carried out by Villa, but none of these attacks were confirmed to have been carried out by Villistas. These were:
* 15 May 1916. Glenn Springs, Texas – one civilian was killed, three American soldiers were wounded, and two Mexicans were estimated killed.<ref name=USWarDept2>{{cite book|author=United States War Dept|title=Annual Reports of the War Department, 1916 |url=https://archive.org/details/annualreportswa110deptgoog |year=1916 |publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office |page=[https://archive.org/details/annualreportswa110deptgoog/page/n289 280] |chapter=Bandit Raids Across the Mexican Border}}</ref>
* 15 June 1916. San Ygnacio, Texas – four soldiers were killed and five soldiers were wounded by bandits, six Mexicans were killed.<ref name=USWarDept2/>
* 31 July 1916. Fort Hancock, Texas – two American soldiers were killed.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Yockelson |first=Mitchell |author-link = Mitchell Yockelson |url=https://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/1997/winter/mexican-punitive-expedition-2.html |title=The United States Armed Forces and the Mexican Punitive Expedition: Part 2 |journal=Prologue |volume=29 |issue=4 |year=1997|access-date=23 February 2011}}</ref> The two dead soldiers were from the [[8th Cavalry Regiment]] and Customs Inspector Robert Wood.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn88085187/1916-07-31/ed-1/seq-1/#date1=07%2F31%2F1916&index=0&rows=20&searchType=advanced&language=&sequence=0&words=Customs+Inspector+Robert+Wood&proxdistance=5&date2=08%2F01%2F1916&ortext=&proxtext=Customs+Inspector+Robert+Wood&phrasetext=&andtext=&dateFilterType=range&page=1 |title=Americans Die in Clash on Border with Bandit Band |newspaper=The Tacoma Times |date=31 July 1916}} Available online at the Library of Congress, ''Chronicling America''. Retrieved 10 November 2014.</ref> One American was wounded, three Mexicans were reported killed, and three Mexicans were captured by Mexican government troops.