Washington, Jan 12 (UNI) The Federal Bureau of Investigation(FBI) on Monday warned about the possibility of armed protests being held across the United States by pro-Trump supporters in the days running up to Joe Biden's inauguration as president.

Authorities said that there are reports that armed groups holding allegiance to President Trump are planning to hold protest gatherings in all 50 state capitols and in Washington DC in the run-up to his 20 January inauguration.

Security which was already pretty tight in Washington DC was tightened further amidst these reports.

On Monday, Mr Biden had told reporters that he was not afraid to take the oath of office outside of the US Capitol.

Security officials have however assured that they will not allow a repeat of the breach seen on January 6 and President-elect Biden and Vice-President-elect Kamala Harris are expected to be sworn in outside the building, only two weeks after it was invaded and vandalised by radical supporters of President Donald Trump who tried to stop the conformation of the election result by Congress.

Chad Wolf, acting head of the Department of Homeland Security, said Monday that he had instructed the US Secret Service to begin special operations for the inauguration on Wednesday - six days early - "in light of events of the past week and the evolving security landscape".

Officials say up to 15,000 National Guard troops could be made available to fortify the event.

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