Clashes broke out on Saturday afternoon June 13 in central London between police and right-wing protesters claiming to "protect" monuments from acts of vandalism by anti-racism activists .

Thousands of protesters, including far-right activists, challenged assembly bans linked to the new coronavirus pandemic to find themselves near Parliament where the statue of ex-Prime Minister Winston Churchill was demolished on the sidelines demonstrations against racism last weekend.

Bottles of water and cans were thrown against the police while some protesters chanted "England".

"Completely unacceptable violence"

Retweeting a video of demonstrators taking part in the police in London, Interior Minister Priti Patel denounced a "completely unacceptable violence".

Throughly unacceptable thuggery.

Any perpetrators of violence or vandalism should expect to face the full force of the law. Violence towards our police officers will not be tolerated.

Coronavirus remains a threat to us all. Go home to stop the spread of this virus & save lives. https://t.co/HsOx9cgrqD

- Priti Patel (@pritipatel) June 13, 2020

She called on them to go home to stop the spread of the new coronavirus and "save lives", when the Covid-19 disease has already killed more than 41,000 people in the country.

"It is clear that far-right groups are causing violence and excitement in central London," tweeted Labor Labor Mayor Sadiq Khan, calling for "to stay away" from the protests.

This is totally unacceptable. We will not tolerate attacks on our police and perpetrators will feel the full force of the law.

It is clear that far right groups are causing violence and disorder in central London, I urge people to stay away. https://t.co/ZImnvmfWeL

- Sadiq Khan (@SadiqKhan) June 13, 2020

Although the Black Lives Matter movement canceled a demonstration planned for Saturday afternoon in the center of the capital, several hundred anti-racist activists gathered in Hyde Park before heading for the city center. British police asked them to disperse at 4 p.m. GMT to avoid the risk of clashes with far-right activists.

Counter-demonstrators have come to "stand guard around our monuments," PA Golding, head of Britain First, told PA news agency. "I'm really tired of the authorities allowing two consecutive weekends for acts of vandalism against our national monuments", with particular reference to the statue of Winston Churchill.

The inscription "was a racist" had been tagged with the name of the conservative leader, accused of having made racist remarks, in particular against the Indians.

Statues targeted

Other statues symbolizing the country's colonial past have been targeted in the country, including that of the slave trader Edward Colston who was unbolted in Bristol. In London, the statues of Nelson Mandela and Gandhi, near the parliament, were protected Friday and that of Winston Churchill was sheltered in a metal box.

Winston Churchill's grandson and former Conservative Minister Nicholas Soames condemned the "cowardly" acts of the perpetrators but said it was "extremely repugnant" to the idea of ​​far-right activists wanting to "stand guard" around the statue, he told The Telegraph on Saturday.

The Minister of the Interior has requested that the Churchill statue be visible again. "We should release Churchill, a hero of our nation who fought fascism and racism in this country and in Europe," she told the Daily Mail on Saturday.

Other anti-racism rallies took place in the country on Saturday, such as in Brighton on the south coast of England and Liverpool in the north of the country.

With AFP

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