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A Guard spokesman declined to say whether law enforcement had informed Capitol units of an IED threat.
“Our main objective is to provide support to local authorities,” said spokeswoman Tracy O’Grady Walsh, noting that the mission of the Guard at the inauguration is to provide crowd management, traffic control. , the coordination of car parks and medical and logistical support to local authorities. “Public safety is our top priority.”
Up to 20,000 guards could be stationed around DC in the coming days, at the request of the DC Metropolitan Police Department and other civilian authorities. On Tuesday evening, hundreds of armed guards were deployed on Capitol Hill before lawmakers begin a second round of impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump.
It is not clear whether National Guards are preparing to respond to potential IEDs themselves, and briefings on potential IEDs have left some uncomfortable, people familiar with the matter said.
Members of the Guard are trained in the use of lethal and non-lethal force, the use of protective equipment, and “de-escalation techniques” as is standard for emergency response missions. of civil unrest, said O’Grady Walsh. Some Guard units, including Guard Combat Engineers, Infantry and Military Police units, typically train for IED response prior to overseas deployments, but not all Guards are thus formed.
“The most important part of defeating IEDs is knowing what to look for, knowing where to look and understanding how to quickly defuse them or mark them for possible destruction,” said the retired Lt. Gen. U.S. Army Mark Hertling, noting that IED training primarily involves “early recognition of planned routes by drones, engineers, and scouts, using intelligence to trace and predict potential IED placement locations that would cause the most damage or destruction, and network interference. ”
An unclassified intelligence bulletin compiled by the US Secret Service, obtained by POLITICO, warned that at least one far-right group, Patriot Actions for America, “is organizing and promoting a violent protest” on January 16 on Capitol Hill.
The newsletter, which relies primarily on open source information from social media and was first reported by The Daily Beast, said law enforcement was also following a separate ‘Million Militia March’ planned by two other groups for the inauguration day itself, warning that “although no civil disobedience has been confirmed, the organizers encouraged participants to bring weapons to the event using images of weapons. on promotional material for the event. The group says they will not attack, but will defend. ”
President-elect Biden was briefed on Wednesday by senior FBI and Secret Service officials of the threats surrounding the inauguration, and will continue to receive daily briefings on “security and operational preparations to ensure a smooth transition.” Biden’s transition team said in a statement. .
The Biden National Security Team “engages with the current administration to obtain as much information as possible about the threat’s image and the preparations in place to deter and defend against disruption or attack violent, “the statement read.
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