INTERNATIONAL NEWS - US President Donald Trump has lifted restrictions imposed by Barack Obama on the transfer of surplus military-style equipment to the police.
An executive order provides police with items including bullet-proof helmets and armoured vehicles.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions said the aim was to enhance public safety.
Mr Obama barred the military from handing over some types of military equipment to police after unrest in Ferguson, Missouri.
The ban followed criticism that police were too heavy handed in dealing with the protests that followed the killing of an unarmed black teenager by a white police officer in 2014.
The former US president was concerned about public reaction to images of heavily militarised police on the streets, saying it was important that police were perceived to be part of the community than being seen as an occupying force.
