U.S. Marines with 2nd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, who were placed in an alert status over the weekend, are briefed by battalion leadership while rehearsing crowd control tactics at a base in the greater Los Angeles area,

Protests in Los Angeles — which have inspired protests in other major cities across the country — have escalated in response to President Donald Trump’s immigration policies and raids from the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).