Amid the ongoing protests sparked by ICE raids and arrests in Los Angeles, a U.S. official has confirmed that 700 Marines based in California have been directed to provide assistance and are anticipated to be on-site within the next 24 hours.
The involved Marines belong to the 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines stationed at Twentynine Palms, California. On Sunday, U.S. Northern Command had stated that they were on standby for deployment if required by the Defense Department.
Shortly before the deployment of the Marines was authorized, President Donald Trump was questioned by ABC News about the possibility of dispatching Marines to Los Angeles. In response, he simply stated, “We’ll see what happens.”
“I mean, I think we have it very well under control,” Trump said. “I think it would have been a very bad situation. It was heading in the wrong direction. It’s now heading in the right direction.” -ABC News’ Luis Martinez and Karen Travers
National Guard is armed but no bullets in chamber
The National Guardsmen on active duty in Los Angeles are carrying weapons but don’t have rounds in the chamber, and they aren’t using rubber bullets or pepper spray, according to a U.S. official.
The Rules of Force that they are operating under call for them to de-escalate any incidents as much as possible, two U.S. officials said. They also have the right to self-defense.
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