A senior US Defense Department official confirmed that about 1,200 members of the National Guard are currently deployed in Washington, according to media sources.
Earlier, ABC news reported that National Guard forces were deployed near the White House on Monday evening, hours after President Donald Trump announced show of military force against violent protests sweeping the country.
On Saturday, The Pentagon ordered the deployment of units of the Military Police in Minneapolis, due to the escalation of protests that have turned into riots, AP reported.
The state of Georgia declared a state of emergency due to the escalation of protests and riots after killing a black man earlier this week by the police in a brutal manner.
Noteworthy, fierce protests have been raging in Minneapolis since an unarmed black man, George Floyd, 46, died after a white officer knelt on his neck last Monday.
Floyd, allegedly tried to pass counterfeit bills at a corner eatery, was taken by ambulance from the scene of his arrest and declared dead the same night at a hospital.
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