ORLANDO, Fla. – A pro-Palestine rally at Lake Eola ended with the arrests of eight demonstrators on Saturday afternoon, according to the Orlando Police Department.
In a release, police said the rally kicked off around 4 p.m., with 20 people peacefully walking around the area while being monitored by officers. The rally ended more than an hour later.
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But around 5:30 p.m., officers said they responded to a “disturbance” near the Publix store on East Central Boulevard, discovering demonstrators arguing with someone who had opposing views.
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“When officers attempted to separate the two parties, a member of the pro-Palestine demonstration group lunged toward an OPD officer and the opposing citizen in a physically threatening manner,” the release reads. “Consequently, the OPD officer arrested the demonstrator for disorderly conduct. Other demonstrators attempted to interfere with the arrest, leading to several altercations.”
In the end, eight demonstrators were taken into custody and face charges including disorderly conduct, battery on a law enforcement officer, resisting arrest with violence, and resisting arrest without violence, police announced.
No additional information has been provided at this time, including the identities of those arrested.
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