Los Angeles residents may begin seeing Marines in the area as soon as Thursday, with protection operations in coordination with the National Guard set to begin Friday.

The 700 Marines were reportedly sent by President Donald Trump to Seal Beach, which is south of L.A. County, to train for nonlethal weapons training—including hand-to-hand combat and crowd control.

Seal Beach training recently finished, and the Marines have moved to "familiarization" training alongside the National Guard in Los Angeles, a U.S. defense official told Fox News. 

NATIONAL GUARD TROOPS DETAIN ANTI-ICE PROTESTERS IN LOS ANGELES UNDER TRUMP'S ORDERS

"They are finishing up training and transitioning to a mission-familiarization phase alongside the 79th IBCT," the official said Thursday. "So it's possible you'll start seeing Marines in the L.A. area today. They have NOT officially begun operations yet." 

More than 2,000 National Guardsmen are still stationed in L.A., as protests are expected to continue through the weekend.

MARINES STILL NOT ON LA STREETS, SEEN IN HAND-TO-HAND COMBAT TRAINING

"No Kings" protests against President Donald Trump and the administration are slated to take place in thousands of cities across the U.S. on Saturday, as the nation's capitol hosts a military parade for the Army’s 250th anniversary and Flag Day.

The protests also coincide with the president's 79th birthday.

Though the Marines, acting under NORTHCOM’s direction, are only tasked with protecting federal property and law enforcement, the cost of the military endeavor has drawn criticism.

Officials estimated sending the Marines and National Guard to California will cost taxpayers about $134 million, taking away from the operations and maintenance budget.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing that the troops were necessary to keep the city and its residents safe.

HEGSETH SPARS WITH SENATE DEMOCRATS OVER MARINE DEPLOYMENT TO LA ANTI-ICE RIOTS: 'NOT ABOUT LETHALITY'

"[It's] not about lethality. It’s about maintaining law and order on behalf of law enforcement agents who deserve to do their job without being attacked by mobs of people," Hegseth said. "We are very proud that the National Guard and the Marines are on the streets defending the ICE agents, and they will continue." 

Despite legal challenges by California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Hegseth said there is "plenty of precedent" for the U.S. supporting law enforcement officers.

Fox News Digital's Michael Dorgan and Danielle Wallace contributed to this report.

Mahmoud Khalil, the Columbia University anti-Israel ringleader, has posted bond after the Trump administration was temporarily blocked from deporting him amid their continued effort to hold him on "foreign policy" grounds.

Khalil posted his $1 bond on Thursday afternoon. He has not been released.

The move came after U.S. District Judge Michael Farbiarz sided with Khalil on Wednesday, writing: "The government cannot claim an interest in enforcing what appears to be an unconstitutional law."

FEDERAL JUDGE SIDES WITH ANTI-ISRAEL RINGLEADER MAHMOUD KHALIL, HALTS TRUMP ADMINISTRATINO'S DEPORTATION BID

ANTI-ISRAEL RINGLEADER MAHMOUD KHALIL'S FREE SPEECH LAWSUIT AGAINST US GOVERNMENT MUST BE HEARD: JUDGE

The ruling was a significant legal setback for the administration's efforts to deport Khalil, who has been held at a detention facility in Louisiana following his involvement in anti-Israel demonstrations at Columbia University.

The court’s decision will remain on hold until Friday morning, giving the government time to appeal.

Khalil, a green card holder, was arrested after leading student protests on the Ivy League campus. He has argued that his free speech rights were being "eroded" by the Trump administration.

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) attorneys have argued that Khalil's free speech claims were a "red herring," saying that the 30-year-old lied on his visa applications.

FEDERAL JUDGE SAYS ATTEMPTED DEPORTATION OF ANTI-ISRAEL RINGLEADER MAHMOUD KHALIL MAY BE UNCONSTITUTIONAL

Khalil, they said, willfully failed to disclose his employment with the Syrian office in the British Embassy in Beirut when he applied for permanent U.S. residency. The agency also accused Khalil of failing to disclose his work with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees and membership in Columbia University Apartheid Divest.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has cited a provision in the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 to justify Khalil's removal from the U.S. The provision allows the Secretary of State to deport noncitizens if the secretary determines their presence in the U.S. "would have serious adverse foreign policy consequences."

Rubio accused Khalil of participating in "antisemitic protests and disruptive activities, which foster a hostile environment for Jewish students in the United States."

"Condoning antisemitic conduct and disruptive protests in the United States would severely undermine that significant foreign policy objective," Rubio wrote.

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Khalil has Algerian citizenship through his mother, but was born in a Palestinian refugee camp in Syria.