Dramatic images shows tear gas fired at crowds of protesters in Portland, US

Donald Trump accused Portland leaders of losing "control of the anarchists and agitators"
A demonstrator reacts to tear gas released by federal law enforcement officers in Portland
REUTERS

Dramatic images and footage shows US federal agents spraying tear gas into large crowds of protesters demonstrating against police brutality in Portland, Oregon.

Demonstrations have taken place in the city for nearly two months since the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis on May 25 sparked worldwide Black Lives Matter protests.

Hundreds gathered in Portland on Sunday evening and chanted: "No justice no peace, take it to the streets and f**** the police".

There were also calls to “defund PPB [Portland Police Bureau] by 50 per cent at least" and for the money to go to "black communities”.

Footage shared on social media shows streets blanketed in tear gas as people used creative tactics to dodge the canisters.

They used leaf blowers and hockey sticks to bat canisters away.

They also used police cones to cover the canisters and protect themselves from the gas.

One reporter at the scene described what he saw on Twitter as rows of "moms in helmets" who stood before younger protesters to protect them from federal agents who used "flash bangs and impact munitions".

"It’s 11:17pm on a Sunday night and moms in helmets are standing in between Federal agents and the youth," said Sergio Olmos on Twitter.

"Federal agents shoot impact munitions/pepper balls though the fence at protestors."

Mothers participate in a demonstration outside the Justice Center during a protest against racial inequality in Portland, Oregon on Friday
REUTERS

Hours before the protests on Sunday, President Donald Trump accused the leaders of Portland of being "missing in action".

"We are trying to help Portland, not hurt it," wrote Mr Trump on Twitter. "Their leadership has, for months, lost control of the anarchists and agitators. They are missing in action.

"We must protect Federal property, AND OUR PEOPLE. These were not merely protesters, these are the real deal!"

It comes after police declared that protests on Saturday were a riot.

The police bureau said in a statement early on Saturday: "As the crowd was dispersed, several people in the crowd were arrested and officers were able to extinguish the fire. Portland Police did not use any CS gas."

The Mayor of Portland has called on the President to remove federal law enforcement from the city as he claimed they were escalating the situation.

Federal law enforcement officers, deployed under the Trump administration's executive order to protect federal monuments and buildings, use pepper spray and tear gas on demonstrators
REUTERS

Mayor Ted Wheeler told reporters: “Keep your troops in your own buildings, or have them leave our city.”

Democratic Governor Kate Brown said Mr Trump is looking for a confrontation in the hopes of winning political points elsewhere and to serve as a distraction from the coronavirus pandemic, which is causing spiking numbers of infections in Oregon and the nation.

Mrs Brown’s spokesman, Charles Boyle, said that arresting people without probable cause is “extraordinarily concerning and a violation of their civil liberties and constitutional rights”.

Tear gas and other chemical agents used by federal agents to disperse demonstrators during a protest against racial inequality in Portland
REUTERS

Mr Wheeler and Mrs Brown have filed a lawsuit against the US agencies involved.

Federal officers have charged at least 13 people with crimes related to the protests so far, Oregon Public Broadcasting reported on Thursday.

Some have been detained by the federal courthouse, which has been the scene of protests, but others were grabbed streets away.

Mr Wheeler said: “This is part of the core media strategy out of Trump’s White House: to use federal troops to bolster his sagging polling data.

“And it is an absolute abuse of federal law enforcement officials.”

Portland police chief Chuck Lovell told reporters on Friday that his officers are in contact with the federal agents, but that neither controls the other's actions.

“We do communicate with federal officers for the purpose of situational awareness and deconfliction,” Mr Lovell said.

“We’re operating in a very, very close proximity to one another … so it’s important for us to know if they’re going to take some type of action and it’s important for them to know if we’re going to take some type of action.”

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