Los Angeles (United States) (AFP) – An Agence France-Presse photographer was recovering Monday after he was shot in the face with a rubber bullet by law enforcement during their standoff with protesters in downtown Los Angeles. The photographer was covering demonstrations on Saturday — part of the many rallies across the country against US President Donald Trump. He was struck twice by rubber bullets fired by authorities when they abruptly moved in to disperse protesters and had to be treated in hospital for his injuries.
“I was covering the protest …approximately 90 feet away from the police when I received the impact of a rubber bullet in my face and another one in my right arm,” he recalled. The photographer, who asked to remain anonymous, said he was clearly identified as a journalist. “I was working with two cameras, a helmet with AFP stickers on it and also, I had a big patch on my chest that said ‘Press,'” he added.
Los Angeles Police Department did not acknowledge firing at the photographer but said it had sought to clear protesters after declaring an unlawful assembly. “Following the dispersal order, less-lethal munitions were used to clear the area of those who refused to comply and leave the area,” it told AFP in a statement. Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, which also policed the protest, said it was reviewing footage of the incident but added it was “not clear whether our personnel were involved.” “The LASD does not condone any actions that intentionally target members of the press,” it said.
Saturday’s rally was the largest of the protests that began in Los Angeles on June 6 and have continued daily ever since. They first erupted in anger at raids by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which has been ordered by the Trump administration to target undocumented migrants across the sprawling, heavily Latino city. The demonstrations have been mostly peaceful and confined to a small section of downtown Los Angeles. But at times they have spiraled into violence that Trump has pounced on to send 4,000 National Guard and 700 Marines into the city — a move loudly protested by local officials.
Other journalists have also been injured during the protests. The Guardian newspaper reported that a British photographer had to undergo emergency surgery after he was shot in the leg by a non-lethal round on June 7. Meanwhile, an Australian reporter was hit in the leg by a rubber bullet while she was reporting on live television on June 8, an incident slammed by the country’s prime minister as “horrific.” And the New York Post said its photographer was shot in the head with a rubber bullet, also during the June 8 clashes.
© 2024 AFP
