Three federal agents who were dispatched to Portland, Oregon to try to quell the city’s violent protests “were probably permanently blinded” by the fighting, White House officials said Friday.
“A federal agent’s hand was impaled by planted nails, another federal agent was shot with a pellet gun, leaving a deep wound in the bone, and tragically, three federal agents were likely permanently blinded by laser-rioters Aiming straight into his eyes, “White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany told reporters on Friday.
The five wounded federal agents were injured Monday during protests in progress at the Multnomah County Justice Center and a nearby federal courthouse in the largest city in Oregon.
President Trump’s press secretary warned: “The Trump administration will not stay on the sidelines and allow anarchy on our streets.”
Federal agents were injured during a clash Monday night when a crowd of more than 1,000 protesters rushed to federal court, Fox News reported.
In addition to attacking federal agents, protesters fired fireworks at federal court, where one person also threatened to cut off the building’s water supply, according to the report.
Richard Cline, deputy director of the Federal Protection Service, told reporters at a news conference Tuesday that the more than 1,000 “troublemakers” also began removing plywood siding outside the Hatfield Federal Courthouse, and also threw objects through its windows.
Several fires also broke out during hand-to-hand combat and protesters tore the building apart with spray paint while blocking traffic and nearby intersections, Cline said.
“When officers responded to put out these fires, they threw glass bottles and the laser beams, which can cause permanent blindness, flashed in their eyes,” Cline said. “We have three officers who currently have eye injuries, and they may not recover sight in those eyes from those laser attacks.”
FPS officials have reportedly purchased protective glasses for federal officials to wear.
The laser attacks on federal agents continued Thursday night, when approximately 2,000 protesters again flooded the streets outside the justice center and the adjacent court.
In response, more than 100 federal agents fired tear gas and fired impact munitions to disperse the crowd, The Oregonian reported.
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