National Guard troops in Washington, DC, begin carrying weapons

Jose Luis Gonzalez/Reuters via CNN Newsource

By Zachary Cohen, Haley Britzky

(CNN) — US National Guard members deployed to Washington, DC, started carrying their sidearms on Sunday, a spokesperson for the Joint Task Force carrying out the mission told CNN.

This follows a directive by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth last week that authorized members of the National Guard, who were deployed as part of President Donald Trump’s anti-crime agenda in the nation’s capital, to begin carrying weapons.

The directive marked a notable shift in guidance from the Pentagon, which had previously indicated that National Guard members could be armed if the circumstances warranted.

A CNN reporter witnessed two guard members carrying long guns Sunday evening in The Wharf, a popular waterfront neighbo