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Minneapolis police have clashed with protesters following the death of an unarmed black man in police custody.

Police fired tear gas and protesters threw rocks and sprayed graffiti on police cars.

Video of the death shows 46 –year-old George Floyd groaning “I can’t breathe” as a policeman kneels on his neck.

Four police officers have been fired, with Mayor Jacob Frey saying that being black “should not be a death sentence”.

The incident echoes the case of Eric Garner, who was placed in a police chokehold in New York in 2014. Eric Garner’s death became a rallying call against police brutality and was a driving force in the Black Lives Matter movement.

Violent clashes began in the afternoon on May 26, when hundreds of people came to the intersection where the incident had taken place on May 25.

Organizers tried to keep the protest peaceful and maintain coronavirus social distancing, with demonstrators chanting “I can’t breathe,” and “It could’ve been me”.

Image source: WCCO

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A crowd of hundreds later marched to the 3rd Precinct, where the officers involved in the death are thought to have worked.

Squad cars were sprayed with graffiti and protesters threw stones at the police building. Police fired tear gas, flash grenades and foam projectiles.

Police said one person had suffered non-life-threatening injuries after being shot away from the protest area but gave no further details.

Officers responding to reports of the use of counterfeit money had approached George Floyd in his vehicle.

According to police the man was told to step away from the vehicle and physically resisted officers.

A police statement said: “Officers were able to get the suspect into handcuffs and noted he appeared to be suffering medical distress.”

The video taken at the scene does not show how the confrontation started.

It shows a white officer using his knee to pin George Floyd to the ground by the neck.

George Floyd groans “please, I can’t breathe” and “don’t kill me” as bystanders urge officers to let him go.

He ceases to move and an ambulance arrives to take him to hospital where he later died.

Mayor Jacob Frey said it was the “right call” to fire the officers.

He said: “Being black in America should not be a death sentence. For five minutes we watched as a white police officer pressed his knee into the neck of a black man. For five minutes. When you hear someone calling for help, you are supposed to help.”

The FBI is investigating the incident and will present its findings to the Minnesota state’s attorney for possible federal charges.

Allegations of police brutality have been constantly highlighted since the start of the Black Lives Matter movement. It began after the acquittal of neighborhood watchman George Zimmerman in the shooting death of African-American Trayvon Martin in February 2012.

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Black Lives Matter protesters have been demonstrating in Minneapolis over the police shooting of Jamar Clark who witnesses say was unarmed and handcuffed at the time.

A state agency is investigating the incident, which happened on November 15. Relatives of the man concerned say he is on life support.

On November 16, Minneapolis Mayor Betsy Hodges called for a federal civil rights investigation into the case.

Black Lives Matter gained prominence after the police shooting of a black teenager in Ferguson, Missouri, in 2014.

That sparked protests nationwide about the police use of excessive force against African Americans.

Jamar Clark, a 24-year-old black man, was shot after police were called to a reported assault, and police say he “interfered” with the paramedics assisting the assault victim.

Police officers have said “misinformation” is spreading about Jamar Clark case, and some have told reporters he was not handcuffed.

On November 15, about 150 people gathered to demonstrate at the scene of the shooting and some camped out outside the police station.

The officer involved in the shooting has not been identified yet but two officers have been placed on paid leave.Black Lives Matter protest Minneapolis

Black Lives Matter organizers are demanding the release of any video footage that may exist of the altercation.

“We have been saying for a significant amount of time that Minneapolis is one bullet away from Ferguson,” Jason Sole, chair of the Minneapolis chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), told Minnesota Public Radio.

“That bullet was fired last night. We want justice immediately.”

Jamar Clark has convictions for making terroristic threats, aggravated robbery and possessing a small amount of marijuana.

In 2013, Minneapolis police shot and killed 22-year-old black man Terrance Franklin, who was suspected of burglary.

Minneapolis is participating in a federal Justice Department program for increasing trust between police and their communities.