Police clash with BLM protesters outside the White House for the second night

Protests continued Sunday night in Washington DC, with videos emerging online of protesters clashing with police in the street and shining lights into the homes of residents chanting, ‘Are you home, get into the street.’

The city saw violent protests in the weeks following police killing of George Floyd in Minnesota back in May, and the chaos seemed to re-erupt on Thursday, the final night of the Republican National convention, when six officers were hospitalized in demonstrations across the city.

The unrest has continued throughout the remainder of the week, with a group of heavily armored officers seen moving in on a hundred-strong crowd of protesters gathered at Black Lives Matter Plaza, close to the White House, shortly before midnight Sunday.

Officers also deployed a tear gas to disperse the crowd, some of whom were wielding homemade shields.

The officers were seen tackling fleeing demonstrators and swinging their bikes at people as they appeared to take several protesters into custody and force others away from the plaza.

Several protesters were observed being slammed against parked vehicles by police, with others being pinned down against the sidewalk, the Washington Post reported.

It was not immediately clear if any protesters or police officers were injured in the scramble.

Around 20 minutes prior, small groups of protesters were seen arguing among themselves about tossing projectiles such as water bottles towards police.

Witness Dominque Haralson, 31, told the Post she saw at least five people taken into police custody.

She questioned the level of force launched against the protesters, who were largely peaceful and said that police seemed to indiscriminately target anyone on Black Lives Matter Plaza.

‘They create their own narrative. Everybody is a suspect,’ she told the outlet. ‘During the day, Black Lives Matter Plaza is a photo op and at night, it’s a war zone.’

The confrontation erupted around two hours after protesters first gathered at the plaza at around 10pm, before marching down nearby streets.

As they walked, protesters were recorded urging others to join them, chanting ‘Out of your homes and into the streets” and “If we don’t get no justice, you don’t get no sleep.’

Some of the crowd shined torches through resident’s windows, others set off firecrackers in the streets and spray-painted sidewalks. They returned to Black Lives Matter Plaza at 11:30pm.

Protesters have gathered in the District for more than three months since the killing of George Floyd in police custody in Minneapolis on May 28. The renewed unrest has been sparked by the shooting of Jacob Blake, 29, who was shot seven times in the back by police in Wisconsin during a domestic dispute call last weekend.

This is the second night in a row police have clashed with protesters at Black Lives Matter Plaza. 

Five people were arrested overnight Saturday after clashes with law enforcement, according to police. Two of those arrested were charged with assault on a police officer.

Some members of the groups were ‘intent on damaging property and injuring Metropolitan Police Department officers,’ the department said in a statement.

‘These individuals ignited fireworks, intentionally set fires, as well as threw projectiles — including glass, bricks and smoke grenades, at officers in the area. Additionally, lasers were used to visually impair officers,’ the department said.

One suspect is accused of intentionally rolling over an officer’s foot with a motorized scooter. Another person allegedly shot fireworks in officers’ direction.

In a tweet early Sunday, President Donald Trump said Mayor Muriel Bowser ‘should arrest these agitators and thugs.’

‘Clean up D.C. or the Federal Government will do it for you. Enough!!!’ he wrote.