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National Guard members are stationed several hundred feet from the US Capitol building.

In pictures: Amid social unrest and pandemic, an inauguration unlike any other

No parades or festivities will be held in Washington for Joe Biden's inauguration as troops guard against potential security threats
Umar A Farooq
Published date: 20 January 2021 21:02 UTC | Last update: 3 months 2 weeks ago
A military checkpoint in downtown Washington.

Joe Biden became the 46th US president on Wednesday, in a barricaded city guarded by more than 25,000 troops and emptied of the spectators who usually throng to the quadrennial ritual (MEE/Umar Farooq)

A National Guard member stops a car at a checkpoint

The National Guard were deployed in the nation's capital to help secure the inauguration, two weeks to the day after a mob attacked the Capitol building in an effort to prevent Congress from certifying Biden's victory (MEE/Umar Farooq)

Joe Biden supporter David Bates points to an "Impeach" button he is wearing, referring to former President Donald Trump.

Joe Biden supporter David Bates points to an "Impeach" button he is wearing, referring to former President Donald Trump (MEE/Umar Farooq)

A US soldier waves while on guard duty

One dozen members of the National Guard were removed from their duties after screening for potential ties to right-wing extremism, Pentagon officials said (MEE/Umar Farooq)

The top of the US Capitol building seen from behind fencing and caution tape.

Washington DC was a virtual ghost town compared with years past following the 6 January insurrection bid at the US Capitol and Covid-19 restrictions (MEE/Umar Farooq)

Riot shields and other anti-protest gear lying on the ground near a military checkpoint in downtown Washington.

Riot shields and other anti-protest gear could be seen lying on the ground near a military checkpoint in downtown Washington (MEE/Umar Farooq)

The streets of downtown Washington were nearly empty on Wednesday morning, with thousands of troops and barbed wire fencing closing off roads to both cars and pedestrians.

Roads and bridges into the city were closed to cars and pedestrians, as were the National Mall and other iconic landmarks (MEE/Umar Farooq)

A man stands near a military checkpoint holding a Confederate-era Bonnie Flag

A man stands near a military checkpoint holding a Confederate-era Bonnie Flag, used to represent the Confederate States of America at the beginning of the US Civil War (MEE/Umar Farooq)

A civilian walks past American troops stationed in Washington on Wednesday morning.

A civilian walks past American troops stationed in Washington on Wednesday morning (MEE/Umar Farooq)

A woman walks past a line of soldiers while carrying the American flag.

A woman walks past a line of soldiers while carrying the American flag (MEE/Umar Farooq)