Roughly 500-700 Marines are deploying to quell anti-ICE riots in Los Angeles following a weekend of escalating violence.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had warned over the weekend that Marines from nearby Camp Pendleton were ready to deploy if necessary. Different sources gave varying figures of 500 and 700 Marines that would be deploying to the city within 24 hours.
Recommended Stories
- Israel recovers Mohammed Sinwar's body from tunnel under Gaza hospital
- Trump faults Ukraine’s Spiderweb attack for making things worse by provoking Russia to step up strikes
- History shows Israel's decision to arm anti-Hamas militia filled with risk
On Monday, defense and congressional officials told the Wall Street Journal that roughly 500 Marines would deploy to the city, while a U.S. official told ABC News that 700 Marines from the 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines at Twentynine Palms, California, had been ordered to assist law enforcement in the city. Two defense officials told NBC News the 700 number, while officials told CNN and Fox News the number would be 500.
Minutes before ABC News was told of the deployment, President Donald Trump announced that “we’ll see what happens” when asked if he was planning on sending Marines to the city.
“I mean, I think we have it very well under control,” he said. “I think it would have been a very bad situation. It was heading in the wrong direction. It’s now heading in the right direction.”
An official speaking with the Wall Street Journal suggested that the Marines wouldn’t be directly engaging with protesters.
The Washington Examiner reached out to U.S. Northern Command for confirmation and comment.
The deployment is a significant escalation of the situation, which has spiraled out of control since protests first began on Friday. Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) previously called Hegseth “deranged” for threatening to send in nearby Marines to quell riots in Los Angeles as National Guard members arrived in the city Sunday morning.
“The Secretary of Defense is now threatening to deploy active-duty Marines on American soil against its own citizens. This is deranged behavior,” Newsom said.
HUGO GURDON ON LOS ANGELES RIOTS: VIOLENCE HAS BEEN TOLERATED FOR TOO LONG
Hegseth expressed support for the order on Saturday night, saying the riots and attacks on ICE facilities represented a national security threat. He then announced that Marines in nearby Camp Pendleton could also be deployed if the violence continued.
“The @DeptofDefense is mobilizing the National Guard IMMEDIATELY to support federal law enforcement in Los Angeles. And, if violence continues, active duty Marines at Camp Pendleton will also be mobilized — they are on high alert,” he said in a post on X.