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.

A statement from the joint task force that has taken over policing in the nation’s capital said units began carrying their service weapons on Sunday

The troops are authorised to use their weapons for self-protection but a White House official told NBC News the National Guard are not making arrests, and will continue to work on protecting federal assets.