Law enforcement officers in the UK capital of London have ordered protesters taking part in a demonstration against the government's coronavirus-related lockdown measures to disperse from Trafalgar Square, the Metropolitan Police said in a statement on Saturday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 19th September, 2020) Law enforcement officers in the UK capital of London have ordered protesters taking part in a demonstration against the government's coronavirus-related lockdown measures to disperse from Trafalgar Square, the Metropolitan Police said in a statement on Saturday.
Protesters have remained in the location despite being encouraged by law enforcement officers to leave, prompting the police to take action, the Met said.
"This, coupled with pockets of hostility and outbreaks of violence towards officers, means we will now be taking enforcement action to disperse those who remain in the area. Those who remain may get arrested," the statement read.
According to the London Evening Standard newspaper, thousands of people attended the event. Certain protesters reportedly held banners proclaiming that the coronavirus disease is a "scam." Demonstrators also called for the resignation of advisers on the government's Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies, the newspaper stated.
Several anti-lockdown protests have been held in the UK since the start of the pandemic. As many as 19 people, including Piers Corbyn, the brother of former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, were arrested at a similar demonstration at London's Hyde Park in May.