Image Credit: Benjamin Hendren/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images 
Gov. Brian Kemp (R) declared a temporary state of emergency in Georgia on Thursday and activated 1,000 Georgia National Guard troops in response to recent anti-police protests and destructive riots in Atlanta.
Kemp’s order referenced protests and riots that occurred on Saturday, which had stemmed from ongoing demonstrations against a police training facility the city is building in a wooded area of metro Atlanta.
The riotous events on Saturday had also come in response to the death of activist Manuel “Tortuguita” Teran, who state officials say was killed by law enforcement after he shot and injured a State Patrol trooper while at the site of the planned facility.
.@FOX5Atlanta pulls a CNN "largely peaceful protest" in their news segment about the violent attack on downtown Atlanta by #Antifa & far-left extremists. The mayor just confirmed the arrestees were found with explosives. pic.twitter.com/wulkxaHL95
— Andy Ngô
(@MrAndyNgo) January 22, 2023
Atlanta officials, including Mayor Andre Dickens (D) and Police Chief Darin Schierbaum, said police on Saturday arrested six individuals after some of the protesters had turned violent and broken businesses’ windows and attacked police cruisers. Dickens noted some were found with explosives that “led to a police officer’s car being set on fire.”
“Make no mistake about it, these individuals meant harm to people and to property,” Dickens said.
