Washington, D.C. [US], July 16 (ANI): The Trump administration on Tuesday (local time) announced the withdrawal of 2,000 National Guard members from the Los Angeles area, citing an improved security situation after month-long immigration protests, CNN reported.
According to CNN, Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said the situation in Los Angeles had stabilized, prompting US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth to order the release of members of the California National Guard’s 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team from the federal mission.
“Thanks to our troops who stepped up to answer the call, the lawlessness in Los Angeles is subsiding,” Parnell said in a statement. “As such, the Secretary has ordered the release of 2,000 California National Guardsmen (79th IBCT) from the federal protection mission.”
The National Guard had been activated amid rising tensions over stepped-up immigration enforcement by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Department of Homeland Security across Southern California. Protests had erupted in various parts of Los Angeles County, particularly downtown, where federal law enforcement presence was highly visible, CNN reported.
A federal district judge had earlier ruled that Trump unlawfully federalized California’s National Guard troops. However, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals temporarily stayed that decision while legal proceedings continue.
California Governor Gavin Newsom welcomed the drawdown but criticized the continued presence of remaining troops as politically motivated.
“For more than a month, the National Guard have been pulled away from their families, communities, and civilian work to serve as political pawns for the President in Los Angeles. While nearly 2,000 of them are starting to demobilize, the remaining guardsmen continue without a mission, without direction, and without any hopes of returning to help their communities,” Newsom said in a statement, as quoted by CNN.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass also welcomed the reduction, calling it a “retreat” driven by local resistance.
“I hope the administration heard that,” Bass said at a press conference. “Our soldiers are trained to fight and kill foreign enemies in foreign lands. There was never a need for them here before. And there isn’t a need for them now.”
Although the protests have largely subsided, immigration raids in the region continue. Last week, ICE agents carried out two raids on legal cannabis farms in Southern California, arresting more than 300 individuals. One person died and several others were injured during the raids, CNN reported.
On Friday, a federal judge ruled that Homeland Security agents were conducting stops and arrests in Los Angeles without probable cause and ordered them to stop detaining individuals based solely on race, language, or occupation. The ruling came after a lawsuit by the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, which accused the administration of unconstitutional arrests and denial of detainees’ legal rights.
In response, Mayor Bass issued directives to city employees instructing them to grant access only to federal agents with valid arrest warrants and to ensure city departments have response plans in place for any future raids. (ANI)
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