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A man identified as a far-right protester has been carried to safety from protestors as animosity was briefly set aside on a day of clashes in London between rival groups and police.
Following violent clashes in Trafalgar Square, Black Lives Matter protestors and some counter protestors headed over the River Thames towards Waterloo Station.
Far right thugs have been accused of being the instigators of the violence by attacking police as well as BLM supporters, who then fought back as the scene descended into violence.
One of the protestors, claimed to be ‘far right’ by the crowd, was seen lying injured on the ground after being chased past the Royal Festival Hall.
But photos then show a black man pick up the white man and carry him over his shoulders to safety – flanked by police in riot gear.
A man identified as a far-right protester has been carried to safety from protestors as animosity was briefly set aside on a day of clashes in London between rival groups and police
Far right thugs have been accused of being the instigators of the violence by attacking police as well as BLM supporters, who then fought back as the scene descended into violence
Reports suggest he was badly beaten by some demonstrators, before other protesters stepped in to protect him.
Both BLM supporters and opponents were seen attacking each other, and even clashed with riot police attempting to keep the scene under control.
Pictures have also caught the moment another white counter-protestor was left with a bloodied face after being hit during a scuffle with protestors.
Earlier in the day there were skirmishes between anti-racism groups and far-right activists. Anti-racist protesters have rallied for days against racism and police abuses since the death of African American George Floyd in Minneapolis last month.
Several hundred demonstrators, mostly white men, attended a protest at Parliament Square organised by far-right groups, including Britain First, which claimed they wanted to protect statues such as Winston Churchill from vandalism.
One counter-protestor, claimed to be ‘far right’ by the crowd, was seen lying injured on the ground after being chased past the Royal Festival Hall.
Reports suggest he was badly beaten by some demonstrators, before other protesters stepped in to protect him
Both BLM supporters and opponents were seen attacking each other, and even clashed with riot police attempting to keep the scene under control
But fights erupted in areas near the Houses of Parliament and Trafalgar Square, as some demonstrators assaulted police officers with foul-mouthed chants and missiles, smoke grenades and flares.
Shards of glass were strewn along the streets close to the Cenotaph on Whitehall after bottles were thrown at police officers clad in riot gear.
A man urinated next to a memorial dedicated to police officer Keith Palmer, who was killed in the 2017 Westminster terror attack amid violent clashes between far-right protesters and police in central London.
MP Tobias Ellwood, who gave first aid to PC Palmer as he lay dying after being stabbed to death in the grounds Parliament by Khalid Masood, said the image of the man urinating next to the memorial was ‘abhorrent’.
The Tory MP for Bournemouth East and chairman of the Defence Select Committee, tweeted a picture of the man and wrote: ‘Absolute shame on this man.
‘Of all the images to emerge over these few testing days I find this one of most abhorrent. Please help identify him.’
Pictures have also caught the moment another white counter-protestor was left with a bloodied face after being hit during a scuffle with protestors
Hundreds of protesters have tried to break into London’s Waterloo Station chanting ‘Black Lives Matter’ and ‘F*** EDL’ as outnumbered police scrambled to hold them back
Scotland Yard said that as of 5pm on Saturday, they had arrested five people for offences including violent disorder, assault on police, possession of an offensive weapon, being drunk and disorderly and possession of Class A drugs.
By around 5.30pm, London Ambulance Service said it had treated 15 people for injuries, including two police officers.
Six of these patients, all members of the public, had to be taken to hospital.
The Metropolitan Police Federation chairman, Ken Marsh, condemned the ‘disorder and unruliness’, and suggested the man pictured urinating next to the memorial should be sent to prison.
He said: ‘It’s horrendous. The man urinating next to Keith Palmer’s memorial is disgusting.
‘A faction of people today only had one intention – to be violent and unlawful, they didn’t come here to protect the statues, it’s just disorder and unruliness.
A man was seen urinating next to a plaque honouring PC Keith Palmer who was stabbed to death during a terrorist attack in Westminster in 2017
Scenes outside Waterloo Station descended into chaos as hundreds of protesters tried to break in after demonstrations today
Police fight to maintain control in Trafalgar Square amid both Black Lives Matter and pro-statue protests in London today
Police armed with shields and riot gear reinforce the blockade on Whitehall as louts rush up the police line
‘I suggest serious custodial sentences in relation to assaults on police and others, criminal damage and urinating next to the memorial of heroes.’
The violent scenes are in contrast with peaceful demonstrations that took place at Hyde Park and Marble Arch by anti-racism protesters in support of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement.
On Friday, statues in Parliament Square – including of Winston Churchill, Nelson Mandela and Mahatma Gandhi – were boarded up to prevent them being targeted by protesters both from the Black Lives Matter movement and far-right groups.
The Metropolitan Police warned people joining demonstrations on Saturday that they must be off the streets by 5pm or risk being arrested.
The violence has been condemned by the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan and Home Secretary Priti Patel, with the latter branding it as ‘thoroughly unacceptable thuggery’.
Speaking before the clashes, Paul Golding, leader of Britain First, said the crowds had turned out to ‘guard our monuments’.
Mr Golding, who was convicted of a terror offence last month, told the PA news agency: ‘I am extremely fed up with the way that the authorities have allowed two consecutive weekends of vandalism against our national monuments.’
There were similar gatherings on Saturday in Belfast, Glasgow and Bristol with crowds massing around monuments.
In Brighton, more than 10,000 protesters formed a line along the seafront in a Black Lives Matter demonstration.
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