LOS ANGELES: US Vice President JD Vance said on Friday that the thousands of troops deployed to Los Angeles this month were still needed despite a week of relative calm in the protest-hit city. President Donald Trump has sent roughly 4,000 National Guard members and 700 Marines, purportedly to protect federal property and personnel, after demonstrations over immigration raids. “Unfortunately, the soldiers and Marines are still very much a necessary part of what’s going on here because they’re worried that it’s going to flare back up,” Vance told reporters in Los Angeles.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom and other Democrats have condemned the National Guard deployments, calling them illegal and unnecessary provocations.

Trump deployed the troops in response to protests in the city, despite objections from city officials and California's governor.