Portland protesters threw what appeared to be a Molotov cocktail in federal court Tuesday morning during another tense clash between protesters and federal police, police said.
The incendiary device exploded into a fireball in front of Mark O. Hatfield’s court just after midnight, and the blast was felt more than a block away, Portland police said in a statement.
The video posted on Twitter shows the explosion of a homemade bomb, and then the crowd applauding.
The court has been at the center of nightly protests in the city, sparked by the death of George Floyd by police on May 25.
More than 100 federal agents were deployed in Portland last week in response to the violent protests and have used sudden explosions, pepper bombs and tear gas to disperse wild crowds.
In response, protesters fired fireworks and lasers at them, while repeatedly targeting federal court.
Portland police said protesters were armed Monday night with “signs, hockey sticks, golf clubs, umbrellas, leaf blowers and fireworks” and threw stones, bottles and fireworks at the courthouse for nearly two hours.
.
