National Guardsmen watch on as a protester demonstrates in Washington DC
WASHINGTON, June 8 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Security measures in the US have been lifted as unrest over the death in police custody of African-American George Floyd eases.
New York ended its nearly week-long curfew and President Donald Trump said he was ordering the National Guard to start withdrawing from Washington DC.
The unrest has largely been replaced by largely peaceful worldwide protests against racism and police brutality.
Black Lives Matter protests continued on Sunday in European nations.
George Floyd died in police custody in Minneapolis on May 25. Video showed him pinned to the floor, with a white police officer kneeling on his neck for almost nine minutes.
Officer Derek Chauvin has been dismissed and charged with murder. Three other officers who were at the scene have also been sacked and charged with aiding and abetting.
Floyd’s funeral is scheduled for Tuesday in Houston, his home city before he moved to Minneapolis.
US Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden is due to travel to Texas on Monday to meet Floyd’s family ahead of the service and offer his condolences. He is not expected to attend the funeral.
Biden also took to Twitter on Sunday to hit out at Mr Trump’s handling of the protests, saying he had “callously used his [words as a president] to incite violence, stoke the flames of hatred and division, and drive us further apart”.
Hours earlier, Trump had tweeted that the National Guard could start withdrawing from the capital as “everything is under perfect control”.
“They will be going home, but can quickly return, if needed. Far fewer protesters showed up last night than anticipated!” he said.
The National Guard is the reserve military force that can be called on by the US president or state governors to intervene in domestic emergencies.
Washington had seen angry protests outside the White House, particularly last Monday when demonstrators were cleared for Trump to walk to a nearby church.
Saturday’s massive protest in the capital was peaceful.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio tweeted: “We are lifting the curfew, effective immediately. Yesterday and last night we saw the very best of our city.”
The end of the curfew comes a day before New York enters the first phase of its plan to reopen after more than two months of lockdown due to the coronavirus outbreak.
“Tomorrow we take the first big step to restart. Keep staying safe. Keep looking out for each other,” de Blasio said.
New York has seen its fair share of violence in the past week, with looting of luxury stores in Manhattan, scores of arrests and the burning of dozens of police cars.
There were also accusations against the police, including the beating of protesters. One patrol car was also driven into a crowd of protesters, sparking a row between politicians.
Many major US cities that saw unrest have now lifted curfews, including San Francisco and Los Angeles, although a few protests have still led to clashes.
Sunday has seen more demonstrations taking place across Europe under the banner of Black Lives Matter.
In Madrid, thousands of people marched carrying anti-racism placards and wearing masks to observe coronavirus measures, although images showed social distancing was not being followed.
Outside the US embassy in Madrid, protesters shouted “I can’t breathe”, echoing Floyd’s last words. Others took a knee to observe the mark of protest that originated in the US against police brutality and racism.
Similar protests were held in Rome, where protesters fell silent for roughly the same time that George Floyd was pinned down.
There have also been events in Brussels, Copenhagen and in several places in the UK.
Protesters in Bristol tore down a statue of Edward Colston, a prominent 17th Century slave trader.
Huge peaceful rallies took place across the US.
Tens of thousands of people gathered in Washington DC, in the city’s largest protest so far, many of them at the newly renamed Black Lives Matter Plaza outside Lafayette Park.
There were also massive protests in San Francisco, Chicago and Los Angeles.
There was even a protest in the small, east Texas town of Vidor, once infamous as a Ku Klux Klan stronghold.
Dozens of white and black protesters carrying Black Lives Matter banners rallied in a place previously known as a “sundown town” because blacks did not venture out after dark.
Though the vast majority of protests were peaceful, both Portland and Seattle saw unrest on Saturday night, with projectiles thrown and arrests made.
Meanwhile, people paid their respects to Floyd in North Carolina, where he was born, with a memorial service held. — NNN-AGENCIES
