Over 100 people nabbed in violent protests in central London: police

LONDON -- More than 100 people were arrested during Saturday's far-right protests in London, which turned violent later and left six police officers injured, Scotland Yard said.

As of 21:00 BST, at least 100 were arrested for offenses including violent disorder, assaulting police officers, possession of an offensive weapon, possession of class A drugs, being drunk and disorderly and breach of the peace, Scotland Yard said.

Six police officers and at least 13 other members of the public were injured during the protests. Six of the people were taken to hospital, the ambulance service said.

It came after around 200 breached the 17:00 curfew with most congregating around the statue of Churchill in Parliament Square in central London.

The protests came despite London Mayor Sadiq Khan urging people to leave by the deadline, which was set by the Metropolitan Police under the Public Order Act.

Six officers suffered minor injuries after "pockets of violence" were directed toward the Metropolitan Police, police said.

By 19:00, police blocked off two pedestrian bridges between Embankment and Waterloo in London as Black Lives Matter protesters had been on them attempting to get north in the capital.

Police officers also marched anti-racism protesters across Westminster Bridge, preventing anyone from passing their cordon.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson condemned the violence. He said on Twitter: "Racist thuggery has no place on our streets. Anyone attacking the police will be met with full force of the law."

"These marches and protests have been subverted by violence and breach current guidelines. Racism has no part in the UK and we must work together to make that a reality," he wrote.

Home Secretary Priti Patel condemned the violence as "appalling and shameful" the "desecration" of a memorial to murdered Keith Palmer during the far-right protest in Westminster. She said a "small minority" had behaved with "extreme thuggery."

For his part, Khan wrote on Twitter: "Millions of Londoners will have been disgusted by the shameful scenes of violence, desecration and racism displayed by the right-wing extremists who gathered in our city today."

"In the face of attacks and abuse, our police did a fantastic job to control the situation. Thank you."

The latest protests took place following a series of anti-racism demonstrations across Britain, sparked by the US police killing of George Floyd, an unarmed African American.

Floyd, 46, died on May 25 in the US city of Minneapolis after a white police officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes while he was handcuffed facing down and repeatedly said he couldn't breathe.