LOS ANGELES: Riot police began deploying in downtown Los Angeles early Wednesday in an apparent operation to evict a two-month old anti-Wall Street protest camp, arresting at least one person.
Dozens of officers in helmets lined up to begin to seal off an area around the City Hall park, and at least one protester was arrested as he struggled with black-clad officers, live TV pictures showed.
The operation got under way two days after a midnight Sunday (0800 GMT Monday) deadline set by LA Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa to clear the camp, which has been in place since October 1.
"We've got a large group of people exercising their First Amendment rights," said a Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) spokeswoman. "We're going to allow them to do that in a peaceful manner."
But she said: "At some point if they're asked to leave we will give them clear instructions on how to leave the area. We're really hoping that we don't have to use any force to get them to move.
"We're going to ask them to leave nicely," she told KCAL 9 television.
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