George Floyd death: Minneapolis police station set on fire during protests as Trump attacks 'thugs'
Tweeting about the growing unrest, President Trump said he could not "stand back and watch this happen to a great American city".
Friday 29 May 2020 18:05, UK
Donald Trump has attacked who he called "thugs" in Minneapolis, Minnesota, after a third night of violent protests over the death of an unarmed black man in custody.
Demonstrators set fire to a police station as anger mounted after George Floyd died on Monday.
In tweets about the latest unrest, the president said he "can't stand back and watch this happen to a great American city", and vowed "when the looting starts, the shooting starts" - which sparked a violation ruling by Twitter for "glorifying violence".
Mr Trump claimed there had been "a total lack of leadership" among the city's authorities as the protests intensified.
He said: "Either the very weak radical left mayor, Jacob Frey, gets his act together and brings the city under control, or I will send in the National Guard and get the job done right."
In a second tweet, Mr Trump wrote: "These thugs are dishonouring the memory of George Floyd, and I won't let that happen. Just spoke to Governor Tim Walz and told him that the military is with him all the way. Any difficulty and we will assume control but, when the looting starts, the shooting starts. Thank you!"
The latter post was deemed by Twitter to have "violated" its "rules about glorifying violence" and users had to click on a view button to read it.
Mr Floyd died after a white officer, Derek Chauvin, was filmed kneeling on his neck while he was handcuffed, for at least eight minutes while arresting him for allegedly using a fake $20 note in a shop.
The 46-year-old can be heard in the widely-circulated mobile phone footage saying he could not breathe, before paramedics are seen lifting him on to a stretcher and into an ambulance - he was later pronounced dead in hospital.
The video showed "a murder right before our very eyes", House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told TV broadcaster MSNBC.
She said: "It's so very, very sad because the American people saw an execution, a murder right before our very eyes.
"It wasn't self-defence. There has to be justice in that case."
On Thursday evening, cheering protesters broke into a police precinct after the department abandoned it, setting it on fire and letting off fireworks, as violence spread across the US over Mr Floyd's death.
Demonstrators in New York defying coronavirus rules against public gatherings clashed with police, while some blocked traffic in downtown Denver.
In Minneapolis, a police spokesman confirmed that staff had evacuated the 3rd precinct station - which covers the area where Mr Floyd was detained - "in the interest of the safety of our personnel".
Video streamed live online showed people entering the building, where fire alarms went off and sprinklers came on as blazes were set. Windows of shops were also smashed.
The city's governor, Tim Waltz, called in the National Guard - which tweeted that it had activated more than 500 soldiers across the area.
It said a "key objective" was to make sure fire departments could respond to calls, and in a follow-up post, it said it was "here with the Minneapolis Fire Department" to assist - but no move was made to put out the fire.
Local leaders have repeatedly urged demonstrators to avoid violence and to "please stay at home".
In a tweet, St Paul Mayor, Melvin Carter - who is black - said: "Please do not come here to protest. Please keep the focus on George Floyd, on advancing our movement and on preventing this from ever happening again."
The US attorney's office and the FBI in Minneapolis said they are conducting "a robust criminal investigation" into Mr Floyd's death.
Donald Trump had previously asked the Bureau to get involved, and it is also looking into whether Mr Floyd's civil rights were violated.
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Derek Chauvin and three other police officers involved in his arrest were sacked on Tuesday.
Officials have called for criminal charges to be brought against Mr Chauvin, who has had 17 complaints filed against him during his 19-year service, online city records show.
Sixteen complaints were closed with no discipline, and the remaining grievance generated two letters of reprimand.
Mr Chauvin's driveway has been splattered with red paint and the word "murderer".
He has not spoken publicly since Mr Floyd's death, and his lawyer has not responded to calls seeking comment.