
Scuffles erupt in Los Angeles as soldiers sent by Trump fan out
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.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Al Arabiya
27 minutes ago
- Al Arabiya
Hopes rise as US and China hold second day of trade talks
The United States and China began a second day of trade talks on Tuesday, seeking to shore up a shaky tariff truce in a bitter row deepened by export curbs. The gathering of key officials from the world's two biggest economies began Monday in London, after an earlier round of talks in Geneva last month. Stock markets wavered as investors hoped the talks will bring some much-needed calm on trading floors and ease tensions between the economic superpowers. A US Treasury spokesman told AFP on Tuesday the 'talks resumed earlier this' morning. One of US President Donald Trump's top advisers said he expected 'a big, strong handshake' at the end of the talks in the historic Lancaster House, operated by the UK foreign ministry. Trump told reporters at the White House on Monday: 'We are doing well with China. China's not easy.' 'I'm only getting good reports.' The agenda is expected to be dominated by exports of rare earth minerals used in a wide range of things including smartphones, electric vehicle batteries and green technology. 'In Geneva, we had agreed to lower tariffs on them, and they had agreed to release the magnets and rare earths that we need throughout the economy,' Trump's top economic adviser, Kevin Hassett, told CNBC on Monday. But even though Beijing was releasing some supplies, 'it was going a lot slower than some companies believed was optimal,' he added. Still, he said he expected 'a big, strong handshake' at the end of the talks. 'Our expectation is that after the handshake, any export controls from the US will be eased, and the rare earths will be released in volume,' Hassett added. He also said the Trump administration might be willing to ease some recent curbs on tech exports. Concessions? Tensions between Washington and Beijing have heightened since Trump took office in January, with both countries engaging in a tariffs war hiking duties on each other's exports to three figures -- an effective trade embargo. The Geneva pact to cool tensions temporarily brought new US tariffs on Chinese goods down from 145 percent to 30 percent, and Chinese countermeasures from 125 percent to 10 percent. But Trump recently said China had 'totally violated' the deal. 'Investors are willing to grab on to any positive trade headline right now, as this is keeping hopes of a rally alive,' said Kathleen Brooks, research director at trading group XTB. Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at the Swissquote Bank, said that although there had been 'no breakthrough' it seemed 'the first day of the second round of negotiations reportedly went relatively well.' 'Rumours are circulating that the US may be willing to make concessions on tech exports in exchange for China easing restrictions on rare earth metal exports,' she said. Rare earth shipments from China to the US have slowed since the tariff war was triggered by Trump's so-called 'Liberation Day' announcements, according to Brooks. The US leader slapped sweeping levies of 10 percent on friend and foe alike, and threatened steeper rates on dozens of economies. The tariffs have already had a sharp effect, with official figures from Beijing showing Chinese exports to the United States in May plunged by 12.7 percent. China is also in talks with other trading partners -- including Japan and South Korea -- to try to build a united front to counter Trump's tariffs. Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Tuesday urged South Korea's new President Lee Jae-myung to work with Beijing to uphold free trade to ensure 'the stability and smooth functioning of global and regional industrial and supply chains.' 'A healthy, stable, and continuously deepening China-South Korea relationship aligns with the trend of the times,' Xi said in a phone call, according to the Xinhua news agency. Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng is heading the team in London, which included Commerce Minister Wang Wentao and China International Trade Representative Li Chenggang. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer are leading the US delegation.


Al Arabiya
an hour ago
- Al Arabiya
Iran lawmakers accuse US and Israel of planning nuclear talks trap
The United States and Israel are seeking to turn nuclear talks into a 'strategic trap' for Iran, Iranian lawmakers said in a statement on Tuesday, days before a planned sixth round of Iran-US nuclear talks. 'The US is not serious in negotiations at all. It has set the goal of talks as imposing its demands and has adopted offensive positions that are diametrically opposed to Iranians' inalienable rights,' the statement from parliamentarians said. US President Donald Trump highlighted on Monday that the two sides remained at odds on the issue of uranium enrichment in Iran, which Iranian lawmakers say is a non-negotiable part of the country's nuclear program. While Trump said the next round of talks would take place on Thursday, Iran's foreign ministry spokesperson said it was planned to take place on Sunday in Oman. Iran is to share a counterproposal to a US offer for a nuclear deal, which it says is not acceptable considering its position on enrichment and lack of detail on the lifting of sanctions. 'The only acceptable deal is one that permanently lifts all sanctions with the aim of achieving economic benefits for Iran,' lawmakers added in their statement.


Leaders
2 hours ago
- Leaders
LA Protests: Marines Deployed, California Sues Trump amid Growing Unrest
The US President, Donald Trump, on Monday ordered additional 2,000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines to be deployed to Los Angeles (LA) to protect federal property and personnel. The move followed days of clashes between authorities and demonstrators protesting against the Trump administration's crackdown on immigration. The troop deployment has caused a dispute between Trump and California Governor, Gavin Newsom, who decided to sue the administration. US Marines to LA As protests in Los Angeles entered its fourth day, Trump ordered the deployment of another 2,000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines to support the nearly 300 National Guard troops who arrived in the city to help quell the protests. Trump had ordered the deployment of an initial 2,000 troops in response to violent protests that swept LA over immigration crackdown. He said the deployment aims to thwart what he called 'Migrant Invasion' and end riots. California Rejects Troops Trump's orders have caused a dispute with California officials, who reject the increased military presence and consider it 'inflammatory' and a 'serious breach of state sovereignty.' The California Governor, Gavin Newsom, and Los Angeles Mayor, Karen Bass, said that sending more military personnel was putting public safety at risk as the police said they don't need the help. Newsom also described the deployment as 'Reckless. Pointless. And Disrespectful to our troops,' he wrote on X. Moreover, Los Angeles Police Chief, Jim McDonnell, expressed confidence in his forces' ability to handle the protests. In a statement, he said that the lack of coordination between the Marines and the police department presented a 'significant logistical and operational challenge.' LA Protests The protests broke out on Friday in downtown Los Angeles after federal agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and other law enforcement agencies conducted raids across LA, arresting over 100 immigrants and sparking protests. Protests intensified on Sunday, as thousands of protesters took to the streets, blocking off a major freeway and burning self-driving cars, while law enforcement responded with tear gas, rubber bullets and flash bangs, declaring several rallies 'unlawful assemblies.' More protests against immigration crackdown erupted across other cities, including San Francisco and Santa Ana in California and Dallas and Austin in Texas. Protests in LA were significantly calmer on Monday morning, as thousands peacefully demonstrated at City Hall and hundreds protested outside a federal complex that includes a detention center holding immigrants. But as evening fell, officers grew more aggressive, sometimes rushing to arrest protesters who came too close. Trump vs. Newsom The US President has taken aim against California Governor, accusing him of being 'very incompetent' and doing a 'horrible job.' Trump defended his decision to send the National Guard troops, saying that otherwise, 'Los Angeles would have been completely obliterated.' Furthermore, Trump backed the 'Border czar' Tom Homan threats of arresting Newsom and Mayor Bass if they obstructed troop deployment efforts. In response, Newsom called this 'an unmistakable step toward authoritarianism.' Lawsuit against Trump In a further escalation of the dispute between Trump and Newsom, California Attorney General, Rob Bonta, filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration over the use of National Guard troops, saying that the move 'trampled' the state's sovereignty. 'We don't take lightly to the president abusing his authority and unlawfully mobilizing California National Guard troops,' Bonta said during a virtual news conference on Monday. The court filing said that Trump's extraordinary deployment of troops to Los Angeles violates the 10th amendment in an 'unprecedented usurpation' of state powers. 'The Governor of the State of California and the State of California bring this action to protect the State against the illegal actions of the President, Secretary of Defense, and Department of Defense to deploy members of the California National Guard, without lawful authority, and in violation of the Constitution,' it said. Short link : Post Views: 22