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Gov. Cooper authorizes 450 NC National Guardsmen to mobilize due to civil unrest, officials say

North Carolina National Guardsmen said the Guard will support local authorities and help safeguard the lives and property of North Carolinians.

NORTH CAROLINA, USA — Gov. Roy Cooper authorized 450 North Carolina National Guardsmen Sunday to mobilize due to civil unrest.

The office of the North Carolina National Guardsmen said the authorization was in response to requests from local officials.

North Carolina National Guardsmen said the Guard will support local authorities and help safeguard the lives and property of North Carolinians and the ability for people to exercise their right to peacefully demonstrate.

Officials said North Carolina is among 15 other states and the District of Columbia that has called out the National Guard.

The office said the NC Guard has long standing partnerships with local and state officials that ensures all response efforts are well coordinated.

“Many of the mobilized Guardsmen are the same citizen-soldiers that for over two months have helped their fellow North Carolinians across the state, distributing food, essential household items and conducting COVID-19 testing during the pandemic,” the office of the North Carolina National Guardsmen said in a press release. “This mobilization will not impact NC Guard's current COVID-19 response efforts.”

The office said governors have used guard members many times during response efforts to support local and state law enforcement in a wide range of capacities, to include site security, crowd control and cyber support.

Officials said all mobilized NC Guardsmen supporting local authorities have undergone special training in site security operations, crowd control and inter-agency operations.

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