Activists, who for two days have been occupying a federal faciliy in rural Oregon, told reporters on Jan. 4 that the federal government had "gone beyond the boundaries of the Constitution" and pushed "people into poverty" by preventing private ranchers from making full use of public lands. 

Armed protesters Ammon and Ryan Bundy and their fellow occupiers said they would continue the standoff at the building in a remote area of the state in order to try to draw attention to ranchers' rights, according to Buzzfeed.

"We have a lot of work to do to unwind the unconstitutional land transactions and unwind the land claims that the federal government hast on these lands," Ammon Bundy said, adding that the occupiers have chosen to call themselves "Citizens for Constitutional Freedom."

The FBI, meanwhile, is hoping to peacefully resolve the standoff, and federal officials said they were working with their state and local counterparts to avoid escalating the situation at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge headquarters in the small town of Burns, NBC News reported.

The federal agency was trying "to bring a peaceful resolution to the situation," according to a statement. So far, police have not approached the refuge, located about 30 miles southeast of Burns.

One of the protesters' key demands -- that two ranchers who had been convicted for arson be spared prison time -- meanwhile, is unlikely to be met, after Dwight and Steven Hammond surrendered themselves to federal authorities on Jan. 4, according to NBC. The ranchers also distanced themselves from the protest. 

Still, Bundy reiterated demands late Monday night that the government release the Hammonds and relinquish control of Malheur National Forest. Occupiers also maintained they would defend themselves against an attack by law enforcement.

The Hammonds' attorneys have said that Ammon Bundy does not speak for them, but Cliven Bundy -- Ammon Bundy's father known for another standoff with the federal government last year in Nevada -- demanded by letter that Harney County Sheriff Dave Ward take the two men into protective custody to shield them from reporting for prison.

Two other militants participating in the standoff, meanwhile, asked supporters in a video appeal posted on Jan 4. to join them "to prevent any bloodshed." Blaine Cooper and Jon Ritzheimer, who are associated with an Arizona militia, asked like-minded ranchers to join their efforts, the Oregonian noted.

"We need you to get up here and stand with us. That's what's going to prevent any bloodshed," said Ritzheimer, who said he was taping from his vehicle parked at the entrance to the refuge. "Armed or unarmed, you get up here. We don't want bloodshed."