Activist Dies at G20 Protest

Cops say protesters pelted them with missiles as they tried to help man
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 2, 2009 2:21 AM CDT

A demonstrator died after collapsing inside a police barricade at the G20 protests in London last night, the Guardian reports. Medics and cops were pelted with missiles as they tried to move and resuscitate the man, who was pronounced dead in a local hospital, said officials. The man had been among thousands of protesters corralled in the streets around the Bank of England. The cause of his death was not yet known.

Police arrested 63 people during the protests, which began peacefully but turned violent after demonstrators were trapped by an army of cops in the financial district and some attacked a Royal Bank of Scotland branch. Police say their aim was to facilitate peaceful demonstrations, although critics accused them of using heavy-handed tactics that inflamed the situation.  "We sat down, trying to have a peaceful protest, but they started whacking us," said one protester.
(More G20 stories.)

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