G20 protest violence escalates in Toronto
Police cars torched, vandalism reported downtownLast Updated: Saturday, June 26, 2010 | 5:57 PM ET
A police car burns after G20 summit protesters set fire to it
in downtown Toronto on Saturday. (Chris Young/Canadian Press)Police in riot gear and protesters clashed during a massive anti-G20 protest march through downtown Toronto that saw at least two police vehicles set ablaze, store and bank windows damaged, and much of the area put under security lockdowns.
The police cruisers were set on fire at the corner of King and Bay streets in the heart of the city's financial district. At one point, as one vehicle burned, protesters surrounded police officers who were trying to protect the car, CBC reporter Amber Hildebrandt reported on Twitter.
The size of the protest crowd has been estimated to be as high as 10,000.
Toronto Mayor David Miller said a small group of "thugs" are to blame for the violence.
“People are calling them protesters. That is not fair to the people who came to protest,” he said.
Toronto police Sgt. Tim Burrows said there have been minor injuries. He added he couldn't confirm how many people have been arrested.
The summit officially gets underway later Saturday with a working dinner hosted by Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
With the violence escalating, the entire area around the actual summit site at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre that is enclosed by concrete barricades and fences are under a security lockdown.
Transit halted
The area's boundaries include Wellington Street to the north, and Lakeshore and Bremner boulevards to the south, Windsor Street and Blue Jays Way to the west, and a section of Bay Street to the east.
Subway service in downtown Toronto has been suspended, with no service for the time being in the loop between Bloor and St. George stations, and no streetcars are running.
Protesters, including some who were wearing masks,
take part in Saturday's march. (Nazim Walji/CBC)GO train service in and out of Union Station has also been stopped.
The airspace over downtown Toronto has also been closed, as has the Gardiner Expressway, one of the city's major traffic arteries.
Hospitals, hotels, businesses and the tourist attraction the Eaton Centre are also under lockdown.
Protesters smashed windows on both sides of Yonge Street at the normally busy shopping area in the Yonge-Dundas corridor. Witnesses said rioters smashed the info booth of the large Future Shop electronics store.
"It's a sizable crowd and getting bigger and bigger" in some areas, the CBC's Steven D'Souza reported. "It doesn't look too dangerous, but it is gathering momentum where I am right now."
'Why do they come here and make problems and make problems for every store?'—Myung Hwon Yang, store owner
Steven Connor, who works at the Hard Rock Café near the Eaton Centre, said several glass store fronts have been smashed, with some protesters using street pylons and road equipment, as some people were inside.
No one seemed to be injured, Connor said.
"There's been a lot of damage in the downtown core," the CBC's Michael Serapio reported.
Michael Hyatt, who was at a Yonge and Dundas gym, said the protesters seemed to target a number of U.S.-based chains.
“It is pretty horrible what they have done to a lot of the stores here. They’ve destroyed the windows at an American Apparel — they destroyed all the windows and pulled out the mannequins and [threw] feces into the store.
“It stinks and it is unbelievable. Foot Locker is destroyed. Pizza Pizza is destroyed. They’ve kind of gone up the street and picked at every U.S. vendor they could find. It’s really kind of sad.”
Bricks, rocks used
On many downtown streets, many store windows were either broken with bricks or rocks, or defaced with graffiti. One downtown bank on Queen Street West had its windows smashed, and a CBC van was damaged.
One convenience store owner said he was determined to stay open.
"It's important for countries to meet, but an island area is better. Why do they come here and make problems and make problems for every store?" Myung Hwon Yang told CBC News.
In one incident, a man dressed in red was arrested and then dragged screaming into a police van. As it happened, a large crowd gathered, denouncing police and chanting "Let him go."
The demonstration started just after 1 p.m. ET at the Ontario legislature. The protesters danced, clapped and chanted while carrying signs, flags and umbrellas. The mood, initially, was upbeat as they first moved from Queen's Park down one of the city's main thoroughfares, University Avenue.
“A couple of arrests” were made early in the protest march. They involved people with incendiary devices that might have been used as weapons, Wendy Drummond of the Integrated Security Force told CBC News.
As well, anarchists in a splinter group were spotted breaking away from the main group of marchers in a few locations, including Queen and John streets, where they attempted to move toward the summit site. They dress similar to members of the Black Block, a group that has used violence such as widespread vandalism in past G20 protests.
Group members are known for wearing black hoodies, masks, balaclavas and skateboard helmets.
"If they see anyone taking pictures, they put their hands up to cover the shot," CBC's Bill Gillespie reported from the scene.
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