National Guard in Washington, DC begins carrying weapons

ISTANBUL

Members of the US National Guard in Washington, DC, are now carrying weapons, with the force warning Sunday that “detentions may occur leading to arrests.”

The announcement, reported by The Washington Post, signals a deeper military role in President Donald Trump’s federal takeover of policing duties in the US capital.

A spokesperson for Joint Task Force-DC said in a statement that Guard members will be equipped with standard-issue weapons, which could include M4 carbine rifles and M17 pistols as part of the deployment involving personnel from Washington, DC, and six states.

On Sunday, Guard members were spotted at Union Station with their sidearms visible. According to the statement, they are operating under rules that “allow use of force only as a last resort and solely in response to an imminent threat of death or serious bodily harm.”

The National Guard’s mission “remains such that it is strengthening the mission to assist local and federal law enforcement in community in Washington, DC,” the task force said in the statement. “The National Guard is committed to public safety.”

The development comes after US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth authorized National Guard troops deployed under Trump’s anti-crime initiative in Washington to carry weapons.

To support the DC Guard, more than 1,900 National Guard troops from West Virginia, South Carolina, Mississippi, Ohio, Louisiana and Tennessee were mobilized, with troops from the Republican-led states starting to arrive in the capital last week.