At an event commemorating the 250th anniversary of the US Army at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, former US President Donald Trump criticized the ongoing protests in Los Angeles and declared them an assault on peace and national sovereignty. He lamented what he described as a dramatic decline in the city’s condition, stating that Los Angeles had transformed from a clean and safe city to a ‘trash heap’. Trump attributed this change to the influence of transnational gangs and criminal networks. He pledged to ‘liberate Los Angeles and make it free, clean, and safe again,’ and attacked California Governor Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, accusing them of supporting the protesters. This comes as tensions rise in Los Angeles, with protests erupting after workplace raids conducted by immigration authorities, prompting arrests and confrontations.