Hundreds of Marines will be deployed to Los Angeles despite calls by California’s governor not to send federal forces, marking a further escalation in a clash between the most populous US state and Donald Trump’s administration.
About 700 Marines would be dispatched to Los Angeles to protect “federal personnel and federal property”, the US Northern Command said on Monday afternoon.
The move came just hours after California’s Democratic governor Gavin Newsom said the state would sue Trump for a separate decision to deploy national guard troops to quell weekend protests. Active-duty military frequently assist during natural disasters and other incidents, but it is very rare that they are deployed to assist in law enforcement.