MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 24th January, 2021) Fewer than 200 of the 25,000 members of the US National Guard who provided security during President Joe Biden's Inauguration got infected with the coronavirus, Gen. Daniel Hokanson has confirmed.
Earlier this week, The Wall Street Journal reported that nearly 200 National Guardsmen deployed to Washington, DC had tested positive for COVID-19.
Hokanson told reporters on Saturday, as quoted by ABC news, that less than 200 of the 25,000 National Guardsmen, an infection rate lower than 1%, had contracted the virus.
"We do everything we can, but we do think that number is low," Hokanson said, specifying that the infected guardsmen will remain in Washington.
Some 15,000 of the National Guard troops have been ordered to leave, while 3,600 more are awaiting orders. Some 7,000 could remain in DC for several weeks, up until mid-March, to help ensure security in the capital, according to Hokanson.
On Thursday evening, reports emerged that National Guard troops guarding the US Capitol were asked to move and sleep in the Senate parking garage. Since criticism of the troops' treatment ensued on social media, the National Guard members were invited back to the Capitol and nearby hotels.
