National Guard troops clashed with protesters in Los Angeles on Sunday, just hours after the troops arrived in the city and, at the direction of President Donald Trump, tear gas was used against a growing crowd gathered outside a federal building.
The standoff erupted outside a downtown Los Angeles detention facility when a group of protesters began shouting insults at federal guards lined up with plastic riot shields.
Apparently no arrests were made.
About 300 National Guard troops arrived in Los Angeles on Sunday at the direction of Mr. Trump in response to recent clashes between federal immigration officials and protesters trying to stop deportations.
Members of the California National Guard have been stationed outside the federal complex in downtown Los Angeles, home to the Metropolitan Detention Center, one of several sites where clashes involving hundreds of people have occurred over the past two days.
The troops included soldiers from the 79th Infantry Brigade's tactical group, the Defense Ministry said on its social media, and many National Guard soldiers were pictured with long guns and armored vehicles.
Mr Trump said he was sending 2,000 California National Guard troops to Los Angeles to quell protests he described as “a form of insurrection”.
The deployment was limited to a small area in downtown Los Angeles. The protests were relatively minor and concentrated in that area. The rest of the city of four million people remained largely untouched.
Their arrival came after clashes outside a Home Depot store in Paramount, a predominantly Latino neighborhood south of Los Angeles.
As protesters attempted to block Border Patrol vehicles, some threw rocks and concrete, prompting federal agents to respond with tear gas, flash bangs and pepper balls.
Tensions had been rising since a series of immigration raids the previous day, with the number of immigrant arrests in the city in a week exceeding 100.
A prominent union leader was arrested during the protests and charged with obstructing law and order.
On Sunday, Homeland Security Secretary Christie
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
