1). RIOT OFFICERS MOVE IN TO CONFRONT PROTESTERS =============================================== 17:37 Tuesday 1 May 2001 Officers in riot gear armed with batons have moved to confront around 3,000 protesters in London's Oxford Street. The move has provoked an angry reaction from the crowd. A helicopter hovered directly over the protesters as pieces of wood and bits of paper were hurled through the air. Protesters threw bottles and cans at police and surged forward towards police in riot gear. Police struck some demonstrators with batons and protesters were pushed backwards again into the middle of Oxford Circus. Several people were stamped underfoot during the crush. A small number of demonstrators covering their faces with scarves, bandannas and masks led chants of "Whose Streets? Our Streets" and "Who let the pigs out. " Police came under a hail of wine bottles, beer bottles and sticks as protesters attempted to surge forward into Regent Street. They advanced momentarily before being pushed back towards Oxford Circus. Police videoed and photographed protesters at the front of the crowd where some people lost their footing in the crush. Police maintained a line at the entrance to Regent Street but continued to be sporadically pelted with objects including beer bottles, hats and pens. One protester threw a policeman's hat back at the officers. Waving placards and chanting protesters blocked buses while traffic on Oxford Street was halted as protesters climbed lampposts and unfurled banners and blew whistles. One masked protester waved a flag bearing the image of revolutionary hero Che Guevara. As the officers moved forward, the tension in the area continued to rise. 14 people have so far been arrested in the capital during the demonstration. � Ananova 2).PROTESTERS VANDALISE LONDON STREETS ====================================== 21:57 Tuesday 1 May 2001 Protesters in the May Day protests in London have left a trail of fire as they moved towards Tottenham Court Road. The windows of a branch of Coffee Republic have also been smashed. In Tottenham Court Road, windows were smashed at the department store Habitat and at a branch of Barclay's Bank. Banks and building societies appeared to have been particular targets for the protesters. A NatWest branch near Warren Street tube station and a Royal Bank of Scotland branch had their windows shattered. A furniture shop was also attacked. A group of about 50 or 60 protesters used rocks and other missiles to shatter the windows, said an eyewitness at the scene. And a car was reportedly turned over by protesters in Tottenham Court Road. Police have arrested a further seven people taking the arrests to 42. A London Ambulance spokeswoman said 13 people had been taken to hospital suffering from minor injuries. Scotland Yard said two officers had been injured during the protests. One received a minor back injury and was treated at the scene while a second officer was taken to hospital. The protesters are still in the Oxford Street area and will remain so until it is felt appropriate to disperse them. Police said there has been reports of fighting between the protesters themselves and estimated that there is still a hard core of almost 1,000 individuals within the demonstrators who were preventing police from dispersing the crowd. "These people are involved in causing disorder, throwing missiles, and are not involved in a lawful process," said a spokesman. Smoke bombs were also being used in Regent Street by some of the protesters, said Scotland Yard. � Ananova 3).42 ARRESTED AS MAY DAY PROTEST TURNS VIOLENT ============================================== 19:59 Tuesday 1 May 2001 Violence has flared in London as police in riot gear seek to contain thousands of anti-capitalist demonstrators. Officers used batons as scuffles broke out between police and the crowds in central London in heavy rain. Police have reported 31 arrests mainly for drugs and the possession of offensive weapons. A London Ambulance spokesman says 10 people had been taken to hospital suffering from minor injuries, with five more treated at the scene. On New Bond Street, a group of around six police have been forced to flee after they came under attack from several hundred protesters who threw bottles at the uniformed officers. Police have used truncheons to push back protesters attempting to break out of Holles Street into Cavendish Square. The demonstrators had been penned into the side streets between John Lewis and the Royal Bank of Scotland. At least four people including a woman were brought out of the crowd with blood gushing from their heads. Others looked dazed after being crushed in the crowd. Several people have been treated by police paramedics after being dragged from the crush. But a number of protesters were trampled underfoot as police charged the crowd. Earlier three men climbed on to a balcony at the John Lewis building amid cheers from the crowd. Missiles were thrown at the thousands of officers who hemmed in the 3,000-strong demonstration at Oxford Circus. Police in Bristol say two people have been arrested during a small anti-capitalist demonstration in the city centre. A spokeswoman said they were both for "minor offences". � Ananova
