Trump declares emergency in Washington DC ahead of Biden inauguration
This follows reports of the FBI warning that armed protests are being planned.
US President Donald Trump has declared a state of emergency in the nation’s capital ahead of president-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration on Jan 20, reports Sputnik news agency.
“Today, President Donald J Trump declared that an emergency exists in the district of Columbia and ordered federal assistance to supplement the district’s response efforts due to the emergency conditions resulting from the 59th presidential inauguration from Jan 11 to Jan 24, 2021,” the White House said in a press release on Monday.
Earlier on Monday, media reported that the FBI is warning that armed protests are being planned at all 50 US state capitols, including the US Capitol building, in the final days leading up to Biden’s inauguration on Jan 20.
The Department of Homeland Security and Federal Emergency Management Agency are authorised to help ensure public safety and to protect property as part of an effort to lessen the threat of a catastrophe, the release said.
On Jan 6, a group of Trump’s loyalists stormed the US Capitol building, clashing with police, damaging property, seizing the inauguration stage and occupying the rotunda.
The unrest took place after Trump urged his supporters to protest what he claims is a stolen election.
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