The United Nations warned Monday against further militarisation of unrest in Los Angeles after US President Donald Trump called out National Guard soldiers to counter days of violent protests over his migrant deportations policy.
"We do not want to see any further militarization of this situation, and we encourage the parties at the local, state and federal levels to work to do that," said UN spokesman Farhan Haq.
Meanwhile, Trump congratulates himself for making a "great decision" to deploy National Guard troops to quell protests in Los Angeles, against the wishes of the California governor and city mayor.
"If we had not done so, Los Angeles would have been completely obliterated," Trump said on Truth Social, as parts of the California city remained on edge after three days of clashes between demonstrators and police forces over Trump's immigration raids.
This comes in the wake of the violent protests gripping parts of downtown Los Angeles following federal immigration raids and the controversial deployment of National Guard troops by the federal government.
He accused Governor Newsom and Mayor Bass of failing to acknowledge the severity of the situation and choosing instead to “lie to the People of California and America by saying that these are ‘peaceful protests.’”
Los Angeles was on edge Monday after violent clashes between demonstrators and security forces over immigration raids, with the Californian governor vowing to sue President Donald Trump for deploying National Guard soldiers.
Police stood watch after ordering people not to gather in the city's downtown where cars were torched over the weekend and security forces fired tear gas at protesters.
"This is exactly what Donald Trump wanted," Governor Gavin Newsom said on social media. "He flamed the fires and illegally acted to federalize the National Guard."
"We're suing him."
The White House also ratcheted up the standoff between the hard-charging Republican president and California's Democrat-led authorities.
"Gavin Newsom did nothing as violent riots erupted in Los Angeles for days," Trump's Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt posted Monday. "President Trump has stepped in to maintain law and order."
She added that "America must reverse the invasion unleashed by (former president) Joe Biden of millions of unvetted illegal aliens into our country."
The protests in Los Angeles, home to a large Latino population, were triggered by raids and dozens of arrests of what authorities say are illegal migrants and gang members.
Critics say Trump -- who has made clamping down on illegal migration a key pillar of his second term -- deliberately stoked tensions by sending in California's National Guard, a stand-by military usually controlled by the state governor.
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