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Violent Demonstrators in Portland Launch Mortars, Damage Federal Courthouse

Taiwan Advises Its Citizens to Avoid Hong Kong After New Law

TAIPEI—Taiwan citizens should avoid unnecessary visits to or transit through Hong Kong, Macau, or mainland China after the passing of an “outrageous” national security law for the former British colony, a Taiwan government official said on July 2. The law, imposed on Hong Kong by Beijing, targets crimes like secession, subversion, terrorism, and collusion with foreign forces with up to life in prison. It has been widely condemned in Chinese-claimed and democratic Taiwan where Hong Kong’s anti-government protesters have won support. A protester (center R) is detained by police during a rally against a new national security law, on the 23rd anniversary of Hong Kong’s handover from Britain to China, in Hong Kong, China, on July 1, 2020. (Anthony Wallace/AFP/Getty Images) Protesters chant slogans and gesture during a rally against…

Violent Demonstrators in Portland Launch Mortars, Damage Federal Courthouse

A demonstration in Portland turned violent overnight as people launched mortars and hurled projectiles at police officers.

The violent demonstrations and riots have continued for weeks in the largest city in Oregon.

A group of several hundred gathered near the Justice Center, which houses a police precinct, late Thursday, blocking streets, chanting, speaking, and setting off commercial-grade fireworks, the Portland Police Bureau said in a statement.

The situation shifted when the group broke into the Justice Center. Soon after, they broke glass doors on the Mark O. Hatfield United States Courthouse, a federal courthouse.

Just before midnight, federal officers that were inside the building went outside to meet the demonstrators, who began launching projectiles including large rocks and bottles.

Demonstrators also lit commercial-grade fireworks, which landed inside the courthouse. At the same time, the mob set fire on Southwest Main Street nearby.

Officers declared a riot at 11:52 p.m. and told people to leave the area immediately, warning that tear gas and other crowd control measures would be used. Demonstrators did not disperse.

Violent Demonstrators in Portland Launch Mortars, Damage Federal Courthouse An aerial view of violent demonstrators in Portland, Ore., overnight July 2, 2020. (Portland Police Bureau)

While officers began using force, the group became “very hostile and violent,” the bureau said, including one person who threw an open pocket knife, which came within inches of striking an officer. The mob continued throwing rocks and cans and shooting off fireworks.

Several arrests were made.

Officers disengaged after the group was pushed away from the courthouse but the mob returned less than an hour later. That’s when they launched mortars towards the courthouse, causing a fire to erupt inside the building.

Officers again dispersed the crowd forcefully.

Violent Demonstrators in Portland Launch Mortars, Damage Federal Courthouse The open pocketknife hurled at police officers in Portland, Ore., overnight July 2, 2020. (Portland Police Bureau)

Hundreds of people have been arrested in Portland since demonstrations began last month, sparked by the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man, in Minneapolis.

At least some of the Portland demonstrators self-identify as members of Antifa and other far-left groups.

Demonstrators argue police are using violent tactics against them. Oregon House Speaker Tina Kotek, a Democrat, sent an email to Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler this week describing police officers’ use of tear gas as “an unnecessary escalation by the PPB against people exercising their freedom of assembly and freedom of speech.”

Wheeler, a Democrat, recently directed police to only use tear gas in situations where “there is a serious and immediate threat to life safety, and there is no other viable alternative for dispersal.”

A federal judge last month ordered police to only use tear gas when “the lives or safety of the public or the police are at risk,” specifically noting that included the lives and safety of those housed at the Justice Center.

Crews early Friday were painting the boards at the center and boarding up the courthouse.

Follow Zachary on Twitter: @zackstieber

Focus News: Violent Demonstrators in Portland Launch Mortars, Damage Federal Courthouse

India’s Virus Cases Surpass 600,000, Curve Rises

NEW DELHI—India’s number of coronavirus cases passed 600,000 on Thursday with the nation’s infection curve rising and its testing capacity being increased. The 19,148 new cases reported in the past 24 hours raised the national total to 604,641, with nearly 100,000 of them in the past four days. A total of 17,834 people have died so far due to the virus, according to India’s Health Ministry. More than 60 percent of the cases are in the worst-hit Maharashtra state, Tamil Nadu state, and the capital territory of New Delhi. However, the western beach of state of Goa, a popular backpacking destination, opened for tourism on Thursday with the state government allowing 250 hotels to reopen after more than three months. Tourists will either have to carry COVID-19 negative certificates or…