US National Guard troops clashed with protesters in Los Angeles last night, hours after they were deployed to the city on the orders of President Donald Trump to quell demonstrations against the actions carried out as part of Trump's anti-migration measures, Reuters reported, quoted by BTA.
About a dozen National Guard personnel, along with officials from the Department of Homeland Security, pushed back demonstrators who had gathered in front of a federal building in downtown Los Angeles. The clashes continued on the street in front of the building.
The protesters chanted "ICE out of Los Angeles," referring to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which began conducting raids in Los Angeles on Friday.
The U.S. Northern Command confirmed that 2,000 National Guard troops had begun deploying to the city, with some already on the ground.
Trump last night called the protests in the city "riots." In a statement to reporters in New Jersey, he threatened to use force against demonstrators who spit on police officers or National Guard troops, saying: "They spit, we hit." Trump did not name any specific instances of protesters spitting on police officers, Reuters noted.
“If we see a danger to our country and our citizens, we will respond very, very strongly in terms of law and order“, Trump also said.
National Guard troops were also seen in Paramount, southeast of Los Angeles, near the scene of clashes between protesters and police on Saturday.
California Governor Gavin Newsom accused Trump of deploying the National Guard because he wanted “a spectacle“. “Don't give Donald Trump what he wants“, Newsom urged in an article in “Ex“. “Speak your mind. Remain peaceful. "Stay calm," he added.
On Saturday, law enforcement clashed with several hundred protesters at Paramount and about a hundred in downtown Los Angeles, with federal officers firing tear gas in an attempt to disperse the crowd, according to witnesses seen by Reuters.
Los Angeles police arrested 27 people on Saturday for failing to disperse from a protest in downtown Los Angeles, police spokeswoman Norma Eisenman said.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Office arrested three people on Saturday on suspicion of assaulting an officer, and three officers suffered minor injuries.
The protests pit Democratic-run Los Angeles, which has a sizable Latino population according to census data, against the Republican Trump administration, which has imposed immigration controls one of the main policies of his second term, Reuters reports.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth warned that the Pentagon was prepared to mobilize active-duty troops "if the violence continues" in Los Angeles, saying that Marines at nearby Camp Pendleton were "on high alert."
Democratic Representative Nanette Barragan, who represents California's congressional districts, criticized the president's decision to deploy National Guard troops, saying local law enforcement agencies had enough resources to respond.
"We don't need help. He's the one escalating the situation, causing tension. "This will only make things worse in a situation where people are already angry about the enforcement of immigration laws," Barragan told CNN.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum also criticized the US government last night for its crackdown on migrants and the deployment of the National Guard.
"We do not agree with this way of solving the immigration problem," said Sheinbaum, who has sought to maintain a positive relationship with Trump. "The problem will not be solved with raids or violence. The solution is to sit down and work on a comprehensive reform," she added.