Riot police today smashed their way into the central London headquarters of anti-capitalist G8 protesters as a week of demonstrations against the international summit began.
Masked squatters threw missiles and shouted 'freedom' as around 50 officers used angle grinders to tear down makeshift barriers protecting a former police station in Soho, while officers also abseiled in from the roof to flush out activists.
Meanwhile in surrounding streets off Oxford Street and Regent Street, scuffles broke out between hundreds of police and G8 protesters, with significant numbers pinned down, handcuffed and taken away in vans.
The agitators were taking part in the Stop G8 'Carnival Against Capitalism', where they were encouraged to 'show their anger' ahead of the G8 conference being held near Belfast later this month.
Britain is hosting the meeting of the Group of Eight leading industrialised nations at a golf resort in Northern Ireland, which will include David Cameron, US President Barack Obama, Russian President Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Breaking in: This picture was taken in the moments after police cut there way into the police station squat taken over by G8 protesters and started dragging out activists
Operation: Police officers detain an activist after raiding the building used as a base for demonstrators protesting against the upcoming G8 summit, while another is taken away with a bleeding head
Incident: Police restrain a protester in Soho, central London, amid demonstrations ahead of the G8 conference in Northern Ireland next week
Chanting: A group set themselves up on the flat roof of the police station they were squatting in before they were forced out when police broke in
After a four-hour stand-off outside the Beak Street police station, officers dressed in full riot gear and armed with shields and batons managed to prise open the wooden door and piled in.
Minutes later they dragged out around 40 protestors in handcuffs. A few tried to resist but most went quietly as they were herded away down a side street and put in riot vans.
On the roof Sky News footage showed one protester gripping onto a chimney stack before being bundled down onto his front by the waiting team.
Later around two dozen protesters gathered outside the BP headquarters in St James's Square, amid a heavy police presence.
By this afternoon at least six arrests had been made for alleged offences including possession of articles with intent to commit criminal damage, assault on police, criminal damage, possession of an offensive weapon and failing to remove a face covering.
A spokeswoman said: 'Officers attended an address in Beak Street with a search warrant relating to intelligence that individuals at the address were in possession of weapons and were intent on causing criminal damage and engaging in violent disorder.'
According to workers on the street, the protestors had been openly smoking drugs, drinking and fighting since arriving last Friday.
John Emmerson, 32, who works a few doors down on Beak Street, said the squatters clashed with a group of suited men on Friday evening.
He said they were openly smoking cannabis and drinking lager, becoming aggressive if approached by locals.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2339503/Hundreds-riot-police-Londons-streets-officers-raid-squat-HQ-G8-protesters.html#ixzz2Vv8uPzLQ
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
No comments:
Post a Comment