Rioters torch driverless cars in third day of LA unrest
Masked protesters in Los Angeles smashed and torched self-driving electric cars as the city was gripped by a third day of volatile demonstrations.
Protesters waving Mexican flags were pictured vandalising and standing on the bonnets of the white Waymo autonomous taxis as thousands of activists descended on the city's downtown area.
It came as demonstrators protesting against federal immigration raids clashed with police again on Sunday, with officers firing rubber bullets, tear gas and balls of pepper spray into the crowd.
Photographs appeared to show a protester smashing a car with a hammer, while in footage a burning American flag was seen being thrown into a vehicle.
Other videos showed the self-driving taxis with their tyres slashed and windows smashed, along with anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency graffiti sprawled on their bodywork.
Protesters who swarmed around the vehicles were also seen tearing their doors off and using a makeshift flamethrower to set them on fire.
The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) warned people to avoid the area. The force said in a statement: 'Burning lithium-ion batteries release toxic gases, including hydrogen fluoride, posing risks to responders and those nearby.'
By 6pm, at least four self-driving cars had been completely burnt out, with only their wheels recognisable amid mounds of white ash and metal.
After launching in San Francisco in 2021, Waymo, a subsidiary of Google's parent company Alphabet, began its service ferrying passengers in the city in November.
A Waymo spokesman told the Los Angeles Times that the company was in touch with law enforcement regarding the incident.
Sunday's protest had been organised by the Los Angeles branch of the Party for Socialism and Liberation. Another is planned for Monday.
Cynthia Martinez, whose parents moved to the US from Mexico, told The Telegraph: 'I'm here because I want to fight for the rights of immigrants.'
The 30-year-old teacher added: 'I want to make sure I'm here for the people and stand up for those that cannot stand up for themselves.'
On Saturday night, Gavin Newsom, the Democrat California governor, had urged protesters not to give Donald Trump a 'spectacle' after the US president announced he was deploying 2,000 National Guard troops to the city.
The arrival of hundreds of troops on Sunday marked the first time since 1965 that a president had activated a National Guard force without a request from a state's governor.
Despite Mr Newsom's pleas, National Guard troops were quickly deployed to guard federal government buildings, as dozens of police cars lined the streets.
The LAPD declared several rallies, in different parts of the city, to be 'unlawful assemblies', while accusing some protesters of throwing concrete projectiles, bottles and other items at officers.
The sky over downtown Los Angeles was thick with smoke as protesters set off fireworks and law enforcement fired flash-bang grenades and rubber bullets in an attempt to disperse the crowd.
Among those caught up in the chaos was an Australian journalist, who was shot in the leg with a rubber bullet as she delivered a piece to camera away from any protesters.
'This is the worst I've seen since the LA riots,' a police officer said as he escorted a Telegraph reporter through a barricaded area to retrieve their car, which had been hit by a projectile, cracking the windscreen.
At least five police helicopters circled above, while officers on horseback fired tear gas into the crowd to push the protesters back.
Whole swathes of downtown Los Angeles were coated in graffiti, with vandals spraying 'F--- Ice, F--- Trump' and 'Deport Trump's wife' onto walls and buildings.
By nightfall, the majority of protesters had gone home. Some of those that remained set fire to bins on street corners, set off fireworks and threw Molotov cocktails towards the police.
One helicopter circled lower, using its spotlight to illuminate pockets of protesters.
'Why are you running?' an officer said from the aircraft, as protesters ran from police just after 10pm. 'I'm gonna getcha.'
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