The anti-racism demonstrations in the UK are "subverted by thuggery", Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said, condemning the attacks on police officers after the 'Black Lives Matter' protests held over the custodial killing of George Floyd turned violent, with the statues of Mahatma Gandhi and Winston Churchill here targeted with graffiti.
Thousands of demonstrators breached the COVID-19 lockdown for a second consecutive day on Sunday to protest against the custodial killing of African-American Floyd, leaving the word "racist" imprinted on the steps below the plinth of the Gandhi statue at Parliament Square in London.
The words "was a racist" were emblazoned on Churchill's plinth nearby as statues became the focal point, with the city of Bristol witnessing the dramatic pulling down of a bronze sculpture of a former slave trader by groups of angry protesters.
Floyd died in Minneapolis on May 25 after white police officer Derek Chauvin pinned him to the ground and knelt on his neck for more than eight minutes while the 46-year-old handcuffed man gasped for breath.
The footage, which went viral, showed Floyd pleading with the officer, saying he can't breathe. The four police officers seen in the footage have since been charged. Floyd's death has triggered widespread protests across the US and in many other countries.
Prime Minister Johnson took to social media on Sunday to say that the anti-racism cause of the demonstrations had been betrayed by the "thuggery" of some protestors as the Metropolitan Police made 12 arrests for public order offences as well as criminal damage to monuments in central London.
"People have a right to protest peacefully and while observing social distancing but they have no right to attack the police," said Johnson.
"These demonstrations have been subverted by thuggery - and they are a betrayal of the cause they purport to serve. Those responsible will be held to account," he said.
The Met Police said a "small minority" of protestors had provoked scenes of violence and launched attacks at officers and threw objects, including glass bottles and fireworks at them.
It said as many as 35 of its officers had reported suffering injuries, two of them requiring hospital treatment for a head wound and a shoulder injury.
"In recent days a minority of protesters sought confrontation with police leading to many officers being injured, including several seriously. When officers sought to protect colleagues and iconic landmarks they faced further obstruction and sustained assault," said Met Police Commissioner Cressida Dick.
"The violent criminality we saw is disgraceful and will have been very frightening for others. It will never be acceptable to attack police officers, damage property and leave others in fear of their safety. We will be carrying out a thorough investigation so that those responsible for criminal acts are brought speedily to justice," she said.
Man plows car through Seattle protest, 1 shot
Authorities say a man drove a car at George Floyd protesters in Seattle Sunday night, hit a barricade then exited the vehicle brandishing a pistol. At least one person was injured. The Seattle Fire Department said the victim was a 27-year-old male who was shot and taken to a hospital in stable condition.
Video taken by a reporter for The Seattle Times showed part of the scene in the city's Capitol Hill neighborhood, where demonstrators have gathered for days near a police precinct.
Seattle City Council members sharply criticized Mayor Jenny Durkan and Police Chief Carmen Best after police used flash bang devices and pepper spray to disperse protesters a day after Durkan and Best said they were trying to de-escalate tensions.
Authorities said rocks, bottles and explosives were thrown at officers in the city's Capitol Hill neighborhood Saturday night. Police said via Twitter that several officers were injured by "improvised explosives." The mayhem in the Capitol Hill neighborhood came on the ninth consecutive day of George Floyd protests in the city. It followed a large, peaceful demonstration earlier. It also came a day after Durkan and Best imposed a 30-day moratorium on the department's use of one kind of tear gas.
