London police said Monday that groups of young people looted shops in some parts of London, attacked police officers and set fire to vehicles. Around 35 police officers were injured. Police commander Christine Jones says officers are "shocked at the outrageous level of violence directed against them."
The violence erupted in the north London suburb of Tottenham on Saturday night amid community anger over a fatal police shooting. Police said "copycat" violence spread to other parts of London on Sunday night and early Monday, including the main shopping district at Oxford Circus.
The protest over the death of Mark Duggan, who was gunned down in disputed circumstances Thursday, was initially peaceful. But it turned ugly as up to 500 people gathered around Tottenham's police station late Saturday.Some protesters threw bottles with gasoline at police lines while others confronted officers with baseball bats and bars and attempted to storm the station. Two police cars and a double-decker bus were set alight, and several buildings along Tottenham's main street were set alight and reduced to smoldering shells.
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