Multiple fires set near White House as protests in Washington escalate ahead of curfew

Washington, June 01: Protesters started fires near the White House as tensions with police mounted during a third straight night of demonstrations held in response to the death of George Floyd at police hands in Minnesota.

An hour before the 11 pm curfew, police fired a major barrage of tear gas stun grenades into the crowd of more than 1,000 people, largely clearing Lafayette Park across the street from the White House and scattering protesters into the street.

Protesters piled up road signs and plastic barriers and lit a raging fire in the middle of H Street. Some pulled an American flag from a nearby building and threw it into the blaze.

Others added branches pulled from trees. A cinder block structure, on the north side of the park, that had bathrooms and a maintenance office, was engulfed in flames. Several miles north, a separate protest broke out in Northwest D C, near the Maryland border.

The Metropolitan Police Department says there were break-ins at a Target and a shopping centre that houses Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue Men's Store, T J Maxx, a movie theatre and speciality stores. Police say several individuals have been detained