U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth warned on June 7 that the Pentagon was prepared to mobilise active-duty troops “if violence continues” in Los Angeles, saying the Marines at nearby Camp Pendleton were “on high alert.”
The statement comes as federal security agents on Saturday confronted protesters in the Paramount area in southeast Los Angeles. A second protest in downtown Los Angeles on Saturday night attracted some 60 people, who chanted slogans including “ICE out of L.A.!”
As the confrontation grew, demonstrators threw pieces of broken up concrete at officers.
“These violent rioters will be held accountable if they harm federal officers, and make no mistake, ICE will continue to enforce our nation’s immigration laws and arrest criminal illegal aliens,” Lyons said Saturday.
President Donald Trump’s administration said it would deploy 2,000 National Guard troops. California Governor Gavin Newsom called the decision “purposefully inflammatory.”
Ryan Morgan and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
