Trump warns protests at Army parade will be met with force

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump warned people on Tuesday against protesting at the weekend military parade in Washington marking the US Army’s 250th anniversary.

“For those people that want to protest, they’re going to be met with very big force,” Trump told reporters in the White House’s Oval Office.Law enforcement agencies are preparing for hundreds of thousands of people to attend Saturday’s parade, US Secret Service Special Agent in Charge Matt McCool said on Monday.

McCool said thousands of agents, officers and specialists will be deployed from law enforcement agencies from across the country. The FBI and the Metropolitan Police Department have said there are no credible threats to the event.At least nine permits have been issued for protests on that day, he said.

Saturday’s event, which will coincide with Trump’s 79th birthday, includes an Army birthday festival on the National Mall and will culminate with a parade through the capital and an enlistment and re-enlistment ceremony presided over by the president.

Nationwide protests on that day were being organised by a group called No Kings.“They’ve defied our courts, deported Americans, disappeared people off the streets, attacked our civil rights and slashed our services,” the group says on its website. “The corruption has gone too far. No thrones. No crowns. No kings.”

There will be a wreath-laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery on Saturday morning, followed by a fitness competition and an Army birthday festival on the National Mall in Washington. The festival will include equipment displays and military demonstrations.

The day will culminate with a parade through the city and an enlistment and re-enlistment ceremony presided over by Trump. There will also be fireworks. After the parade, the US Army Golden Knights team will parachute in and present Trump with a flag.

The US Army is bringing 6,500 troops into Washington, along with 150 vehicles and 50 aircraft for the celebration. The vehicles are being moved to the city on trains and larger trucks, while the helicopters will fly in.

The Army has said that more than 25 M1 Abrams tanks will feature in the parade. It will also include 28 Stryker armored vehicles, four Paladin self-propelled artillery vehicles, and artillery pieces including the M777 and M119.

The flyover will include Apache and Black Hawk helicopters along with Chinooks. Older aircraft like the World War Two-era B-25 bomber and P-51 Mustang will also take part.The parade will include 34 horses, two mules and one dog.