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Los Angeles was on edge Monday after violent clashes between demonstrators and security forces over immigration raids, with the Californian governor vowing to sue President Donald Trump for deploying National Guard soldiers.Police stood watch after ordering people not to gather in the city’s downtown where cars were torched over the weekend and security forces fired tear gas at protesters.”This is exactly what Donald Trump wanted,” Governor Gavin Newsom said on social media. “He flamed the fires and illegally acted to federalize the National Guard.””We’re suing him.”The White House also ratcheted up the standoff between the hard-charging Republican president and California’s Democrat-led authorities.”Gavin Newsom did nothing as violent riots erupted in Los Angeles for days,” Trump’s Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt posted Monday. “President Trump has stepped in to maintain law and order.”She added that “America must reverse the invasion unleashed by (former president) Joe Biden of millions of unvetted illegal aliens into our country.”The protests in Los Angeles, home to a large Latino population, were triggered by raids and dozens of arrests of what authorities say are illegal migrants and gang members.Critics say Trump — who has made clamping down on illegal migration a key pillar of his second term — deliberately stoked tensions by sending in California’s National Guard, a stand-by military usually controlled by the state governor.”You have the National Guard with loaded magazines and large guns standing around trying to intimidate Americans,” protester Thomas Henning told AFP on the scene Sunday.- ‘BRING IN THE TROOPS!’ -On Monday morning, a heavy police presence patrolled mostly deserted streets. A few protesters remained overnight, with some lobbing projectiles and fireworks, according to TV coverage.Trump called the protesters “insurrectionists,” and demanded authorities arrest people in face masks.”BRING IN THE TROOPS!!!!” he wrote on his Truth Social platform.At least three self-driving Waymo cars were torched Sunday, and local law enforcement deployed tear gas and smoke grenades to disperse protesters.An Australian reporter was hit in the leg with a rubber bullet fired by a police officer on live television. Her employer later said she was unharmed.Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officers set up containment lines to keep demonstrators separated from armed National Guardsmen from the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team in helmets and camouflage gear.At least 56 people were arrested over two days and three officers suffered minor injuries, the LAPD said.Police in San Francisco said on Sunday about 60 people had been arrested in similar protests in the northern Californian city.Trump was unrepentant when asked about the use of troops, hinting at deployment nationwide.”You’re going to see some very strong law and order,” he told reporters Sunday.Asked about invoking the Insurrection Act — which would allow the military to be used as a domestic police force — Trump said: “We’re looking at troops everywhere. We’re not going to let this happen to our country.”About 500 Marines were officially put in “a prepared-to-deploy status.”The National Guard is frequently used in natural disasters, and occasionally in civil unrest, but almost always with the consent of local authorities.Trump’s deployment of the force — the first over the head of a state governor since 1965 at the height of the civil rights movement — was criticized by Democrats, including Kamala Harris.The former vice president called it “a dangerous escalation meant to provoke chaos.” Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum on Monday condemned violence, while calling on the United States to respect migrant rights.Sheinbaum urged Mexicans living in the United States “to act peacefully and not give in to provocations.”

NATO head Mark Rutte was on Monday to urge a “quantum leap” in defence capabilities including a “400-percent increase” in air and missile defence to shield the alliance against Russia.”We see in Ukraine how Russia delivers terror from above, so we will strengthen the shield that protects our skies,” the NATO secretary general Rutte was to say in a speech to the Chatham House think-tank in London, according to comments released in a statement.To maintain credible deterrence and defence, NATO needs “a 400-percent increase in air and missile defence”.”The fact is, we need a quantum leap in our collective defence,” he was to say.Rutte will meet UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday ahead of his speech, their second Downing Street talks since the Labour leader came into power in July 2024.Rutte’s comments come ahead of a NATO summit in the Netherlands this month.But they were swiftly condemned by Moscow, which denounced NATO as “an instrument of aggression” ahead of Rutte’s speech.NATO “is demonstrating itself as an instrument of aggression and confrontation”, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters in Moscow.US President Donald Trump is pressing alliance members to announce a major boost in their military budgets.He is pushing NATO members to increase their defence spending to five percent of their gross domestic product (GDP), up from the current target of two percent. US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth said last week in Brussels that the allies were close to an agreement on the five-percent target, which could be formalised at the summit in The Hague.”This alliance, we believe, in a matter of weeks, will be committing to five percent — 3.5 percent in hard military and 1.5 percent in infrastructure and defence-related activities,” Hegseth said on Thursday. “That combination constitutes a real commitment, and we think every country can step up.”- ‘Stronger, fairer alliance’ -NATO members have been scrambling to bolster their defence capabilities since Russia launched its war against Ukraine in February 2022.”Danger will not disappear even when the war in Ukraine ends,” Rutte was to say on Monday.”We must have more forces and capabilities to implement our defence plans in full.””Our militaries also need thousands more armoured vehicles and tanks, millions more artillery shells.”Britain announced plans last week to build up to 12 nuclear-powered attack submarines and six munitions factories to rearm the country in response to what it said were threats from Russia.Earlier this year, Starmer’s government pledged to increase defence spending to 2.5 percent of GDP by 2027, but has not yet set a firm timeline for further hikes.”NATO has to become a stronger, fairer and more lethal alliance,” Rutte will add.

United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres said on Monday the world could not let the deepest oceans “become the wild west”, at the start in France of a global summit on the seas.World leaders are attending the UN Ocean Conference in Nice as nations tussle over contentious rules on mining the seabed for critical minerals and the terms of a global treaty on plastic pollution.US President Donald Trump has brought urgency to the debate around deep-sea mining, moving to fast-track US exploration in international waters and sidestepping global efforts to regulate the nascent sector.The International Seabed Authority, which has jurisdiction over the ocean floor outside national waters, is meeting in July to discuss a global mining code to regulate mining in the ocean depths.Guterres said he supported these negotiations and urged caution as countries navigate these “new waters on seabed mining”.”The deep sea cannot become the wild west,” he said, to applause from the plenary floor.Many countries oppose seabed mining, and France is hoping more nations in Nice will join a moratorium until more is known about the ecological impacts of the practice.French President Emmanuel Macron said a moratorium on deep-sea mining was “an international necessity”.”I think it’s madness to launch predatory economic action that will disrupt the deep seabed, disrupt biodiversity, destroy it and release irrecoverable carbon sinks — when we know nothing about it,” the French president said.The deep sea, Greenland and Antarctica were “not for sale”, he said in follow up remarks to thunderous applause.Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva called for “clear action” from the seabed authority to end a “predatory race” among nations seeking critical minerals on the ocean floor.”We now see the threat of unilateralism looming over the ocean. We cannot allow what happened to international trade to happen to the sea,” he said.- Wave of commitments -Macron said a global pact to protect marine life in international waters had received enough support to become law and was “a done deal”.The high seas treaty struck in 2023 requires ratifications from 60 signatory countries to enter into force, something France hoped to achieve before Nice.Macron said about 50 nations had ratified the treaty and 15 others had formally committed to joining them.This “allows us to say that the high seas treaty will be implemented,” he said.Other commitments are expected on Monday in Nice, where around 60 heads of state and government have joined thousands of business leaders, scientists and civil society activists.On Monday, the United Kingdom is expected to announce a partial ban on bottom trawling in half its marine protected areas, putting the destructive fishing method squarely on the summit agenda.Bottom trawling involves huge fishing nets indiscriminately dragging the ocean floor, a process shockingly captured in a recent documentary by British naturalist David Attenborough.Macron said on Saturday that France would restrict trawling in some of its marine protected areas but was criticised by environment groups for not going far enough.- Words into action -On Sunday, French environment minister Agnes Pannier-Runacher hinted at “important announcements” during Nice about the creation of new marine protected areas.Samoa led the way this past week, announcing that 30 percent of its national waters would be under protection with the creation of nine marine parks.Just eight percent of global oceans are designated for marine conservation, despite a globally agreed target to achieve 30 percent coverage by 2030.But even fewer are considered truly protected, as some countries impose next to no rules on what is forbidden in marine zones or lack the finance to enforce any regulations. Nations will face calls to cough up the missing finance for ocean protection.Small island states are expected in numbers at the summit to demand money and political support to combat rising seas, marine trash and the plunder of fish stocks.The summit will not produce a legally binding agreement at its close like a climate COP or treaty negotiation. But diplomats and other observers said it could mark a much-needed turning point in global ocean conservation if leaders rose to the occasion.”We say to you, if you are serious about protecting the ocean, prove it,” said President Surangel Whipps Jr of Palau, a low-lying Pacific nation.np-aag-fcc-fff/gil

Police ordered the public to disperse from downtown Los Angeles after further unrest, with cars torched and security forces firing tear gas at protesters, in the wake of Donald Trump’s deployment of National Guard troops to America’s second-biggest city. Protests in Los Angeles, home to a large Latino population, broke out on Friday, triggered by immigration raids that resulted in dozens of arrests of what authorities say are illegal migrants and gang members.Critics say the US president — who has made clamping down on illegal migration a key pillar of his second term — was deliberately stoking tensions with his deployment of California’s National Guard, a stand-by military usually controlled by the state governor.Demonstrators told AFP the purpose of the troops did not appear to be to keep order, with one calling it an “intimidation tactic.””You have the National Guard with loaded magazines and large guns standing around trying to intimidate Americans from exercising our First Amendment rights,” protester Thomas Henning said.California Governor Gavin Newsom called Trump’s order a “serious breach of state sovereignty” and demanded the president to rescind the order and “return control to California.”He also urged protesters to stay peaceful, warning that those who instigate violence will be arrested.”Don’t take Trump’s bait,” he said on social media platform X.Authorities declared downtown Los Angeles a place of “unlawful assembly” by late Sunday evening. Local media showed a heavy police presence blanketing mostly deserted streets in various areas. A few protesters remained scattered, with some lobbing projectiles and fireworks according to local aerial TV coverage.Trump called the protesters “insurrectionists,” and demanded authorities “ARREST THE PEOPLE IN FACE MASKS, NOW!” “BRING IN THE TROOPS!!!!” he wrote on his Truth Social platform.At least three self-driving Waymo cars were torched as demonstrators thronged around downtown Los Angeles earlier on Sunday, and local law enforcement deployed tear gas and smoke grenades to disperse protesters.An Australian reporter was hit in the leg with a rubber bullet fired by a police officer while on live television. Her employer 9News said she was unharmed.Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officers established containment lines some distance from federal buildings by Sunday afternoon, preventing contact between angry demonstrators and the scores of armed National Guardsmen from the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team who had gathered in helmets and camouflage gear.Law enforcement had arrested at least 56 people over two days and three officers had suffered minor injuries, the LAPD said.Police in San Francisco said on Sunday about 60 people had been arrested in similar protests in the northern Californian city.- ‘Troops everywhere’ -Trump was unrepentant when asked about the use of troops, hinting instead at a more widespread deployment in other parts of the country.”I think you’re going to see some very strong law and order,” he told reporters. Responding to a question about invoking the Insurrection Act — which would allow the military to be used as a domestic police force — Trump said: “We’re looking at troops everywhere. We’re not going to let this happen to our country.”US Northern Command, part of the Department of Defense responsible for national defense, said “approximately 500 Marines… are in a prepared-to-deploy status should they be necessary to augment and support” the ongoing federal operations.The National Guard is frequently used in natural disasters, and occasionally in instances of civil unrest, but almost always with the consent of local authorities.Trump’s deployment of the force — the first over the head of a state governor since 1965 at the height of the civil rights movement — was criticized by Democrats, including Kamala Harris. The former vice president called it “a dangerous escalation meant to provoke chaos.” Newsom said Trump was “putting fuel on this fire.””Commandeering a state’s National Guard without consulting the Governor of that state is illegal and immoral,” he said on X. “California will be taking him to court.” – ‘Intimidation’ -However, Republicans lined up behind Trump to dismiss the pushback.”I have no concern about that at all,” said  House Speaker Mike Johnson, accusing Newsom of “an inability or unwillingness to do what is necessary.”Demonstrator Marshall Goldberg, 78, told AFP that deploying Guardsmen made him feel “so offended.””We hate what they’ve done with the undocumented workers, but this is moving it to another level of taking away the right to protest and the right to just peaceably assemble.”Raids by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency in other US cities have triggered small protests in recent months, but the Los Angeles unrest is the biggest and most sustained against Trump’s immigration policies so far.

“Maybe Happy Ending,” a South Korean musical adapted for Broadway about two robots who find connection, won big at Sunday’s Tony Awards, scooping up six prizes at the gala celebrating the best in American theater.Stars of the season Cole Escola and Nicole Scherzinger also won their first Tonys, on a night that celebrated Broadway’s revival after a years-long pandemic slump.Cynthia Erivo — the Oscar-nominated “Wicked” star who herself boasts a Tony — hosted the ceremony at Manhattan’s Radio City Music Hall honoring this year’s buzzy, diverse competitive slate .It was Broadway’s most financially lucrative year ever, she told the crowd.”Broadway is officially back — provided we don’t run out of cast members from ‘Succession,'” she joked, referring to the decorated TV dramedy about a family’s media empire.Sarah Snook — who scored an Emmy for her role in “Succession” — won the Tony for best leading actress in a play, taking on all 26 roles in the stage adaptation of Oscar Wilde’s novel “The Picture of Dorian Gray.”A host of new shows and stars drew 14.7 million people to the Broadway performances this season, grossing $1.89 billion at the box office.Some of showbiz’s biggest names graced New York’s stages, including George Clooney, Denzel Washington, Jake Gyllenhaal — and Snook’s “Succession” co-stars Kieran Culkin and Jeremy Strong.”Please go to the theater, whether it’s a Broadway show or a school play,” said Michael Arden, who won a Tony for best direction of a musical for “Maybe Happy Ending.”Darren Criss of “Glee” fame — already an Emmy winner for portraying killer Andrew Cunanan in “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story” — won the Tony for lead actor in that musical. “I have such immense pride to get to be part of this notably diverse exquisite Broadway season this year,” he told the audience as he accepted his award.Scherzinger bested a packed field including the legendary Audra McDonald — the performer with the most Tonys in history — for best actress in a musical for her role as faded star Norma Desmond in “Sunset Boulevard,” which also won for best revival of a musical.”If there’s anyone out there who feels like they don’t belong or your time hasn’t come, don’t give up,” said an emotional Scherzinger, who once fronted the pop girl group The Pussycat Dolls.”Just keep on giving and giving because the world needs your love and your light now more than ever. This is a testament that love always wins.”- ‘Oh, Mary!’ -Even though Escola’s hit dark comedy “Oh, Mary!” was the favorite for best new play, the award went to intense family portrait “Purpose” by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, which also won the 2025 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.But Escola still won big for their unhinged performance in the one-act reimagining of Abraham Lincoln’s assassination through the eyes of his wife — a raging alcoholic who dreams of life as a cabaret star.Escola bested a stacked field that included Clooney.”Oh, Mary!” also snagged the prize for best direction, won by Sam Pinkleton.”You have taught me to make what you love and not what you think people want to see,” Pinkleton said in his speech, speaking directly to a tearful Escola.”We can bring joy to people at the end of a crappy day and that feels like a big deal to me,” Pinkleton added to ardent applause.The night’s rollicking performances included a gripping rendition of “Rose’s Turn” from McDonald, and a captivating performance of “As If We Never Said Goodbye” from Scherzinger.The gala also featured a much-touted reunion of the original cast of “Hamilton,” as that groundbreaking smash musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda celebrates its 10th anniversary.A heartfelt segment honored those the theater community lost over the past year, with Erivo and Sara Bareilles delivering the classic “Tomorrow” from “Annie.”The song’s composer, Charles Strouse, died last month.Some acceptance speeches made oblique references to ongoing political turmoil across the United States, as President Donald Trump’s immigration raids trigger protests. But Trump was not explicitly mentioned.

Demonstrators torched cars and scuffled with security forces in Los Angeles on Sunday as police kept protesters away from the National Guard troops President Donald Trump sent to the streets of America’s second-biggest city.Unrest broke out for a third day, with protesters angry at action by immigration officials that has resulted in dozens of arrests of what authorities say are illegal migrants and gang members.The raids — which began in broad daylight on Friday in a city with a large Latino population — were always likely to spark reaction among the public in the liberal city.But opponents say Trump, who has made clamping down on illegal migration a key plank of his second term, was deliberately stoking tensions with his deployment of California’s National Guard, a stand-by military usually controlled by the state’s governor, Gavin Newsom.”We didn’t have a problem until Trump got involved,” Newsom wrote on X.”This is a serious breach of state sovereignty — inflaming tensions while pulling resources from where they’re actually needed. Rescind the order. Return control to California,” he added.At least three self-driving Waymo cars were burned on Sunday, with two others vandalized as protesters roamed around a limited area in downtown Los Angeles.Traffic was halted on a key freeway for over an hour while scores of people thronged the roadway. They were moved off by California Highway Patrol officers, who used flash-bangs and smoke grenades.But after a limited early confrontation between federal agents from the Department of Homeland Security and a few dozen protesters at a detention center, the clashes all involved local law enforcement.By early afternoon LAPD officers established containment lines some distance from federal buildings, preventing contact between angry demonstrators and the scores of armed National Guardsmen from the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, who had gathered in helmets and camouflage gear.As night fell a few dozen people — many wearing masks and hoodies — remained in hotspots, with some lobbing projectiles and fireworks.Law enforcement have arrested at least 56 people over two days, and three officers have suffered minor injuries, LAPD said.- ‘Troops everywhere’ -Trump, asked about the use of troops, was unrepentant, hinting instead at a more widespread deployment in other parts of the country.”You have violent people, and we are not going to let them get away with it,” he told reporters. “I think you’re going to see some very strong law and order.”Responding to a question about invoking the Insurrection Act — which would allow the military to be used as a domestic police force — Trump said: “We’re looking at troops everywhere. We’re not going to let this happen to our country.”US Northern Command, part of the Department of Defense responsible for national defense, said “approximately 500 Marines… are in a prepared-to-deploy status should they be necessary to augment and support” the ongoing federal operations.The National Guard is frequently used in natural disasters, and occasionally in instances of civil unrest, but almost always with the consent of local authorities.Trump’s deployment of the force — the first over the head of a state governor since 1965 at the height of the civil rights movement — was criticized by Democrats, including former vice president Kamala Harris who called it “a dangerous escalation meant to provoke chaos.” – ‘Intimidation’ -But Republicans lined up behind Trump to dismiss the pushback.”I have no concern about that at all,” said  House Speaker Mike Johnson, accusing Newsom of “an inability or unwillingness to do what is necessary”.Demonstrators told AFP the purpose of the troops did not appear to be to keep order.”I think it’s an intimidation tactic,” Thomas Henning said.”These protests have been peaceful. There’s no one trying to do any sort of damage right now and yet you have the National Guard with loaded magazines and large guns standing around trying to intimidate Americans from exercising our First Amendment rights.”Marshall Goldberg, 78, told AFP that deploying Guardsmen made him feel “so offended.””We hate what they’ve done with the undocumented workers, but this is moving it to another level of taking away the right to protest and the right to just peaceably assemble,” he said.Raids by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency in other US cities have triggered small-scale protests in recent months, but the Los Angeles unrest is the biggest and most sustained against Trump’s immigration policies so far.A CBS News poll taken before the Los Angeles protests showed a slight majority of Americans still approved of the crackdown.

President Donald Trump’s sweeping new travel ban came into effect early Monday immediately after midnight, barring citizens from a dozen nations from entering the United States and reviving a divisive measure from his first term.The move is expected to disrupt refugee pathways and further restrict immigration as the Trump administration expands its crackdown on illegal entries.Many of the nations covered by the restrictions have adversarial relations with the United States, such as Iran and Afghanistan, while others face severe crises, like Haiti and Libya.In announcing his restrictions last week, Trump said the new measure was spurred by a recent “terrorist attack” on Jews in Colorado.The group had been protesting in solidarity with hostages held in Gaza when they were assaulted by a man the White House said had overstayed his visa.That attack, Trump said, “underscored the extreme dangers posed to our country by the entry of foreign nationals who are not properly vetted” or who overstay their visas.The move bans all travel to the United States by nationals of Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Congo-Brazzaville, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen, according to the White House.Trump also imposed a partial ban on travelers from Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela. Some temporary work visas from those countries will be allowed.New countries could be added, Trump warned, “as threats emerge around the world.”Mehria, a 23-year-old woman from Afghanistan who applied for refugee status, said the new rules have trapped her and many other Afghans in uncertainty.”We gave up thousands of hopes and our entire lives… on a promise from America, but today we are suffering one hell after another,” she told AFP.- World Cup, Olympics, diplomats excluded -The ban will not apply to athletes competing in the 2026 World Cup, which the United States is co-hosting with Canada and Mexico, or in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, Trump’s order said.Nor will it apply to diplomats from the targeted countries.United Nations rights chief Volker Turk warned that “the broad and sweeping nature of the new travel ban raises concerns from the perspective of international law.” US Democratic lawmakers and elected officials blasted the ban as draconian and unconstitutional.”I know the pain that Trump’s cruel and xenophobic travel bans inflict because my family has felt it firsthand,” congresswoman Yassamin Ansari, who is Iranian-American, posted Sunday on X.”We will fight this ban with everything we have.”Rumors of a new travel ban had circulated following the Colorado attack, with Trump’s administration vowing to pursue “terrorists” living in the United States on visas.US officials said suspect Mohamed Sabry Soliman, an Egyptian national according to court documents, was in the country illegally having overstayed a tourist visa, but that he had applied for asylum in September 2022. Trump’s new travel ban notably does not include Egypt.His proclamation said Taliban-ruled Afghanistan and war-torn Libya, Sudan, Somalia and Yemen lacked “competent” central authorities for processing passports and vetting.Iran was included because it is a “state sponsor of terrorism,” the order said.For the other countries, Trump’s order cited an above-average likelihood that people would overstay their visas.

Security forces clashed with protesters outside a detention center in Los Angeles on Sunday as National Guard troops deployed by President Donald Trump fanned out across the city following two days of unruly protests over raids by immigration agents.Trump on Sunday vowed the troops would ensure “very strong law and order,” while appearing to leave the door open to deploying soldiers in other cities.The US military said 300 soldiers from the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team had been sent to three separate locations in the greater Los Angeles area, and were “conducting safety and protection of federal property & personnel.”Helmeted troops in camouflage gear and carrying guns were stationed at a federal detention center in downtown Los Angeles, where they joined Department of Homeland Security forces.Pepper spray and tear gas were fired into a small crowd — including journalists — as forces moved protesters back to allow a convoy of vehicles to enter the detention center. Trump, asked about the use of troops, appeared to leave the door open to a more widespread deployment in other parts of the country.”You have violent people, and we are not going to let them get away with it,” he told reporters. “I think you’re going to see some very strong law and order.”Responding to a question about invoking the Insurrection Act — which would allow the military to be used as a domestic police force — Trump said: “We’re looking at troops everywhere. We’re not going to let this happen to our country.”The deployment in California — the first over the head of a state governor since the Civil Rights era — was “purposefully inflammatory,” Governor Gavin Newsom said.”Trump is sending 2,000 National Guard troops into LA County — not to meet an unmet need, but to manufacture a crisis,” Newsom posted on X Sunday.”He’s hoping for chaos so he can justify more crackdowns, more fear, more control. Stay calm. Never use violence. Stay peaceful.”Newsom’s warning came after Los Angeles was rocked by two days of confrontations that saw federal agents firing flash-bang grenades and tear gas toward crowds angry at the arrests of dozens of migrants.- ‘Intimidation’ -Republicans lined up behind Trump to dismiss the pushback by Newsom and other local officials against the National Guard deployment.”I have no concern about that at all,” Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson told ABC’s “This Week”, accusing Newsom of “an inability or unwillingness to do what is necessary”.As for threats by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Saturday to send in active-duty Marines on top of the Guard troops, Johnson said he did not see that as “heavy-handed.””We have to be prepared to do what is necessary,” he argued. Demonstrators told AFP the purpose of the troops was not necessarily to keep order.”I think it’s an intimidation tactic,” Thomas Henning said.”These protests have been peaceful. There’s no one trying to do any sort of damage right now and yet you have the National Guard with loaded magazines and large guns standing around trying to intimidate Americans from exercising our first amendment rights.”Estrella Corral said demonstrators were angry that hard-working migrants who have done nothing wrong were being snatched by masked immigration agents.”This is our community, and we want to feel safe,” she told AFP.”Trump deploying the National Guard is ridiculous. I think he’s escalating, he’s trying to make a show for his agenda.”Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders said the move demonstrated “Trump’s authoritarianism in real time.” “Conduct massive illegal raids. Provoke a counter-response. Declare a state of emergency. Call in the troops,” he wrote on social media, adding: “Unacceptable.”- ‘Good men and women’ -The National Guard — a reserve military — is frequently used in natural disasters, and occasionally in instances of civil unrest, but almost always with the consent of local authorities.Trump has delivered on a promise to crack down hard on undocumented migrants — who he has likened to “monsters” and “animals” — since taking office in January. Raids by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency in other US cities have triggered small-scale protests in recent months, but the Los Angeles unrest is the biggest and most sustained against Trump’s immigration policies so far.A CBS News poll taken before the Los Angeles protests showed a slight majority of Americans still approved of the immigration crackdown.Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum on Sunday defended migrants living north of the border.”Mexicans living in the United States are good men and women, honest people who went to the United States to seek a better life for themselves and to support their families. They are not criminals! They are good men and women!” she said.

Donald Trump’s deployment of California’s National Guard marks the first time in decades that a US president openly defied a state governor and sent troops to an emergency zone.By ordering 2,000 guardsmen to Los Angeles to help quell protests against raids by US immigration agents, Trump essentially mounted a takeover of the state’s military regiments to address “lawlessness” on the city’s streets.The National Guard is a reserve military rooted in the 17th century local militias created in the American colonies before the country’s founding.Since then the guard has had multiple responsibilities: domestic disaster relief and security, homeland defense and prevention of civil unrest; and acting as reserve forces for US military deployments overseas.Presidential orders to deploy guardsmen domestically are not uncommon.But clashes between a president and governor over deployments — or the lack thereof, such as during the US Capitol riot by Trump supporters on January 6, 2021 while he was still in office — have been rare. – Los Angeles, 2025 -The White House said Trump relied on a seldom used law, known as Title 10, that permits National Guard federalization in times of “a rebellion or danger of a rebellion against the authority of the Government of the United States.”California Governor Gavin Newsom called the decision “purposefully inflammatory.” But Trump’s order proceeded, and the guard troops were on LA streets Sunday.”This is the first time since 1965 that a president has deployed the National Guard without a request by a state governor,” Kenneth Roth, a longtime former Human Rights Watch executive director, posted on X.”Then it was (president Lyndon) Johnson protecting civil rights protesters. Now it’s Trump creating a spectacle so he can continue his immigration raids.”Elizabeth Goitein of the Brennan Center for Justice warned of a “shocking abuse of power” by Trump, whose memorandum authorizes federalization of National Guard troops “at locations where protests against (federal immigration) functions are occurring or are likely to occur.””Trump has authorized the deployment of troops anywhere in the country where protests against ICE activity might occur,” Goitein posted on X. “That is a huge red flag.”- Alabama, 1965 -A landmark civil rights moment led to a National Guard clash between a president and a segregationist governor.With demonstrators led by Martin Luther King Jr on a five-day march from Selma to Alabama’s capital Montgomery, governor George Wallace pledged National Guard security — but then reneged.The U-turn incensed Johnson who, in defiance of Wallace, called up the guard. The march was protected by thousands of Army soldiers and federalized guard members.- Arkansas, 1957 -When the Little Rock school system was ordered desegregated, Arkansas’ pro-segregationist governor Orval Faubus deployed the National Guard to surround a high school and prevent nine Black students from entering.President Dwight Eisenhower bristled at the standoff and told Faubus the guard must maintain order so the Black students could attend. Instead, Faubus pulled the guardsmen, leaving security to local forces.Eisenhower issued an executive order federalizing the Arkansas National Guard, and ordered 1,000 US Army troops to join them.- Kent State, 1970 -Perhaps no anti-Vietnam war protest was more pivotal than at Ohio’s Kent State University, where students slammed Richard Nixon’s war expansion.As unrest swelled, the National Guard opened fire, killing four students and wounding nine others.The shootings sparked outrage, but also led to reforms regarding how the guard handles civil unrest and use of force.- Hurricane Katrina, 2005 -The massive hurricane left much of New Orleans underwater, leading to the largest-ever peacetime deployment of the National Guard. But critics accused then-president George W Bush of favoring a militaristic response over humanitarian relief.Louisiana’s governor, Kathleen Blanco, warned that many among the thousands of National Guard and federal troops were battle-tested Iraq war veterans.”These troops know how to shoot and kill and I expect they will,” she reportedly said.- Outside White House, 2020 -June 1, 2020 saw a brutal crackdown on demonstrators following the police murder of African-American George Floyd.With people aggressively protesting near the White House, the National Guard joined police to maintain order. Flash grenades and tear gas were deployed. Unlike in the nation’s 50 states, the DC National Guard is under direct command of the US president, who at the time was Trump.

Hundreds of National Guard troops took up positions in Los Angeles Sunday on the orders of US President Donald Trump, a rare deployment over the head of the state governor, after unruly protests against immigration raids. The US military said 300 soldiers from the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team had been sent to three separate locations in the greater Los Angeles area, and were “conducting safety and protection of federal property & personnel.”Helmeted troops in camouflage gear and carrying guns could be seen in front of a federal complex — including a detention center — with the phrase “Our City” spray-painted on it in downtown Los Angeles.The deployment overrode the protests of local officials, an extraordinary move not seen in decades that California Governor Gavin Newsom slammed as “purposefully inflammatory.” It came ahead of more planned protests in the city, which has a large Latino population, including a call by organizers for a “mass mobilization” at City Hall at 2:00 pm local time (2100 GMT).A separate Pride parade in support of LGBTQ rights — also under assault by the Trump administration — also began Sunday in Hollywood, with organizers posting on Instagram that they were working with local law enforcement to keep the celebrations safe. “Trump is sending 2,000 National Guard troops into LA County — not to meet an unmet need, but to manufacture a crisis,” Newsom posted on X Sunday.”He’s hoping for chaos so he can justify more crackdowns, more fear, more control. Stay calm. Never use violence. Stay peaceful.”Newsom’s warning came after Los Angeles was rocked by two days of confrontations that saw federal agents firing flash-bang grenades and tear gas toward crowds angry at the arrests of dozens of migrants.On Sunday pepper spray hung in the air from overnight, AFP reporters said.- ‘Escalation’ -Republicans lined up behind Trump to dismiss the pushback by Newsom and other local officials against the National Guard deployment.”I have no concern about that at all,” Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson told ABC’s “This Week”, accusing Newsom of “an inability or unwillingness to do what is necessary”.As for threats by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Saturday to send in active-duty Marines on top of the Guard troops, Johnson said he did not see that as “heavy-handed.””We have to be prepared to do what is necessary,” he argued. Demonstrators that AFP spoke to said troops were not really being sent in to keep order.”I think it’s an intimidation tactic,” said Thomas Henning.”These protests have been peaceful. There’s no one trying to do any sort of damage right now and yet you have the National Guard with loaded magazines and large guns standing around trying to intimidate Americans from exercising our first amendment rights.”Estrella Corral said demonstrators were angry that hard-working migrants who have done nothing wrong were being snatched by masked immigration agents.”This is our community, and we want to feel safe,” she told AFP.”Trump deploying the National Guard is ridiculous. I think he’s escalating, he’s trying to make a show for his agenda.”Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders said the move demonstrated “Trump’s authoritarianism in real time.” “Conduct massive illegal raids. Provoke a counter-response. Declare a state of emergency. Call in the troops,” he wrote on social media, adding: “Unacceptable.”- ‘Unacceptable’ -The National Guard — a reserve military — is frequently used in natural disasters, and occasionally in instances of civil unrest, but almost always with the consent of local authorities.It is the first time since 1965 that a president has deployed a National Guard without a request by a state governor, the former head of Human Rights Watch, US activist Kenneth Roth, posted on X.Trump has delivered on a promise to crack down hard on undocumented migrants — who he has likened to “monsters” and “animals” — since taking office in January. Raids by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency in other US cities have triggered small-scale protests in recent months, but the Los Angeles unrest is the biggest and most sustained against Trump’s immigration policies so far.A CBS News poll taken before the Los Angeles protests showed a slight majority of Americans still approved of the immigration crackdown.Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum on Sunday defended migrants living in north of the border.”Mexicans living in the United States are good men and women, honest people who went to the United States to seek a better life for themselves and to support their families. They are not criminals! They are good men and women!” she said.