"Scotland Yard said there had initially been no incidents of note as both groups marched towards Whitehall, but as the marches met one another on either end of the street, divided by metal barriers and lines of police, some supporters had tried to breach the line that was put in place to keep the groups apart. Skirmishes broke out with the Met police confirming officers were targeted with thrown objects."
"Skirmishes broke out with the Met police confirming officers were targeted with thrown objects. The force tweeted: Officers have attacked with projectiles and have had to use force to avoid their cordon being breached. Officers are having to intervene in multiple locations to stop Unite the Kingdom protesters trying to access sterile areas, breach police cordons or get to opposing groups. A number of officers have been assaulted, they added."
More than 110,000 people gathered in central London for a freedom of speech festival led by far-right activist Stephen Yaxley Lennon, known as Tommy Robinson. Protesters marched from Southwark to Whitehall draped in the flag of St George and the union flag as about 5,000 counter-protesters from trade unions and anti-fascist groups took a separate route. Both marches were separated by metal barriers and lines of police, but some supporters tried to breach the cordon when the routes met. Skirmishes erupted, officers were targeted with thrown objects, police used force and a number of officers were assaulted.
Read at www.theguardian.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]