Sadiq Khan, mayor of London
"To the thousands of Londoners who protested peacefully today: I stand with you - and I share your anger and your pain"
-6 June, 2020
"This is not acceptable...Large gatherings are banned for a reason"
- 26 September, 2020
Anti-lockdown protesters today clashed with police after at least 15,000 demonstrators descended on Trafalgar Square as part of a rally against coronavirus measures in the UK.
Attendees of the 'We Do Not Consent' rally ditched their masks as they crammed into the London square this afternoon, despite Metropolitan Police pleading with people to stick to Britain's coronavirus restrictions.
Crowds, who were also warned violence would not be tolerated, carried placards reading 'is this freedom?' and 'end the crazy rules' as they flocked to protest against Britain's coronavirus restrictions.
Sixteen people were arrested during the demonstration - which later moved to Hyde Park - and nine police officers were injured with two rushed to hospital.
Piers Corbyn, 73, brother of former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, was among the crowd alongside conspiracy theorist David Icke, 68, who has made a series of false claims linking Covid-19 to 5G technology.
Demonstrators ditched their masks and ignored social distancing as they shouted 'we will win' and waved flags, before police shut them down because crowds 'have not complied with the conditions of their risk assessment'.
Trafalgar Square has a maximum capacity of 20,000 people and photographs showed crowds almost filling the area as they stood shoulder to shoulder to protest against Britain's increasingly stricter lockdown rules.
In contrast, last month's protests had around half today's turn-out - at around 10,000 people.
Skirmishes broke out between protesters and police later in the day, with those in attendance chanting 'shame on you' - shoving at officers as they passed through the crammed crowd.
Pictures show a woman appearing to be knocked to the ground as a struggle broke out behind her, while one man chanted with blood pouring out of his head.
In a statement, Scotland Yard said the breach had 'put people in danger of transmitting the virus' which voided their risk assessment and left those at the event 'no longer exempt' from Covid-19 restrictions.
'We are now asking those in Trafalgar Square to leave,' the force said. 'Officers will be engaging with crowds and informing them of this development. By leaving now, you can keep yourself safe and avoid any enforcement action being taken by officers.'
In other coronavirus developments today:
- Scientists are considering a plan to ask everyone over the age of 45 to shield to stop the spread of Covid-19;
- Britain has been warned to expect 100 coronavirus deaths a day within the next three to four weeks;
- Government sources claimed Boris Johnson's 10pm pubs curfew was based on 'back of a fag packet calculations' and 'NOT advocated by SAGE';
- The restrictions imposed in March could kill 75,000 in five years, including 31,000 deaths not related to Covid, according to documents submitted to SAGE;
- Unions call for in-person university classes to be suspended as 3,000 students are placed in lockdown;
- MailOnline analysis reveals Britain's outbreak began to surge after 'Super Saturday' reopening;
- Sadiq Khan calls for Londoners to be stopped from visiting friends and family.
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