The Northern Command of the United States announced that it will deploy 700 marines in the next 48 hours in Los Angeles after completing their training, in the context of a new escalation of protests that began last Friday in the Californian city and have spread to multiple cities in up to thirteen states of the United States against deportations and raids by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) against irregular migration.
The Marines will join the Los Angeles Police and over 4,000 National Guard soldiers, 2,100 of them already deployed and the other half mobilized by Thursday, as explained by General Scott Sherman, who leads the operation.
“Nevertheless, ‘the situation is still unclear’ for any of the three deployed security forces,” said CNN the chief of the Los Angeles Police Department, Jim McDonnell, who emphasized that “this is unprecedented.”
Why did the military deployment increase in Los Angeles?
In the main city of California, protests continued on Wednesday for the sixth consecutive day, despite the curfew that began at 8 pm (local time). Between 20 and 30 arrests were reported, as well as the use of rubber bullets and mounted police to disperse the protesters.
In turn, California Governor Gavin Newsom stated that “a fire at San Bernardino Ranch (less than 100 km from Los Angeles) covers 4,000 acres (1,619 hectares) and continues to grow. Meanwhile, five out of the 14 California National Guard firefighting teams are understaffed because Trump deployed them for a political event in Los Angeles."
“This is not only illegal. It’s dangerous,” added the governor of California.
Protests spread across the United States
At the same time, the protests have spread to multiple cities in up to 13 states across the country and in Washington D.C. In Spokane, Washington state, a state of emergency was declared, a curfew was imposed, and more than 30 arrests have been made.
Cities like New York, Las Vegas, and Indianapolis have also been the scene of intense protests, where a crowd surrounded the Indiana Pacers’ NBA stadium during the third game of the finals against the Oklahoma City Thunder.