National Guard deploys to New Orleans for New Year’s after 2025 terror assault | EUROtoday

National Guard members are patrolling New Orleans for New Year’s as town marks one 12 months since an assault on revelers on Bourbon Street killed 14 individuals.

The National Guard deployment in New Orleans, approved by President Donald Trump, started Tuesday as a part of a heavy safety presence for New Year’s celebrations.

The measure follows high-profile National Guard missions the Trump administration launched in different cities this 12 months, together with in Washington and Memphis, Tennessee. But the sight of National Guard troops isn’t uncommon in New Orleans, the place troops earlier this 12 months additionally helped bolster safety for the Super Bowl and Mardi Gras.

“It’s no different than what we’ve seen in the past,” New Orleans police spokesperson Reese Harper mentioned. “They’re not here for immigration purposes. They’re here for that added layer of visibility. This is for visibility and just really to keep our citizens safe. It’s just another tool in the toolbox and another layer of security.”

The Guard is anticipated be confined to the French Quarter space widespread with vacationers and will not be partaking in aiding in immigration enforcement, Harper mentioned. Guardsmen will function just like earlier this 12 months after they patrolled the world round Bourbon Street following the vehicle-ramming assault on Jan. 1.

The 350 Guard members will keep via Carnival season, when residents and vacationers descend on the Big Easy to partake in costumed celebrations and big parades earlier than ending with Mardi Gras in mid-February.

Louisiana National Guard spokesperson Lt. Col. Noel Collins mentioned in a written assertion that the Guard will assist native, state, and federal regulation enforcement “to enhance capabilities, stabilize the environment, assist in reducing crime, and restoring public trust.”

In whole, greater than 800 native, state and federal regulation enforcement officers might be deployed in New Orleans to shut off Bourbon Street to vehicular visitors, patrol the world, conduct bag searches and redirect visitors, metropolis officers mentioned throughout a information convention Monday.

The elevated regulation enforcement presence comes a 12 months after Shamsud-Din Jabbar drove round a police blockade within the early hours of Jan. 1 and raced down Bourbon Street, plowing into individuals celebrating New Year’s Day.

The attacker, a U.S. citizen and Army veteran who had proclaimed his assist for the Islamic State militant group on social media, was fatally shot by police after crashing.

After an expansive search, regulation enforcement positioned a number of bombs in coolers positioned across the French Quarter. None of the explosive units detonated.

In the instant aftermath of the assault, 100 National Guard members had been despatched to town.

In September, Gov. Jeff Landry requested Trump to ship 1,000 troops to Louisiana cities, citing considerations about crime. Democrats pushed again, particularly leaders in New Orleans who mentioned a deployment was unwarranted. They argued that town has truly seen a dramatic lower in violent crime charges lately.