Trump calls protestors in police killing of black man ‘thugs’

US President Donald Trump on Friday called protesters in Minneapolis “thugs” and vowed that “when the looting starts, the shooting starts” after protesters outraged by the police killing of a handcuffed black man torched a police station.

Protesters set on fire a Minneapolis police station on Thursday in a third straight night of mass protests to express their fury over the death of George Floyd.

“These THUGS are dishonoring the memory of George Floyd, and I won’t let that happen,” he tweeted. “Just spoke to Governor Tim Walz and told him that the Military is with him all the way. Any difficulty and we will assume control but, when the looting starts, the shooting starts. Thank you!”

"I can’t stand back & watch this happen to a great American City, Minneapolis. A total lack of leadership. Either the very weak Radical Left Mayor, Jacob Frey, get his act together and bring the City under control, or I will send in the National Guard & get the job done right...," he added.

It was the kind of personal statement expected from a president that has a long history of defending police.

Twitter accused Trump on Friday of “glorifying violence”, attaching a disclaimer to one of his tweets about unrest in Minneapolis that it said broke its rules.

Trump’s message can now be read only after clicking on a notice which says: “This Tweet violated the Twitter Rules about glorifying violence. However, Twitter has determined that it may be in the public’s interest for the Tweet to remain accessible.”

In a thread, Twitter said it had taken the action “in the interest of preventing others from being inspired to commit violent acts”. People will still “be able to retweet with comment, but will not be able to like, reply or retweet it.”

Trump issued an executive order Thursday seeking to limit the broad legal protections of social media companies like Twitter and Facebook..

If this was enacted, the companies would become open to lawsuits and greatly increased government regulation.

Trump -- angered this week after Twitter tagged one of his tweets for the first time with a fact-check notice -- said regulation was needed because the companies are no longer neutral forums but engaging in "political activism."

Minneapolis police station torched as protests grow over police killing of black man

A police precinct was burning in Minneapolis late Thursday as protests over the death of George Floyd raged on for a third straight day.

Floyd’s death is gaining international attention. Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan offered condolences Thursday to the family of Floyd over his death. 

“I believe that the perpetrators of this inhumane act shall receive the punishment they deserve. We will be monitoring the issue,” Erdogan said on Twitter.

"The racist and fascist approach that led to the death of George Floyd in the US city of Minneapolis as a result of torture has not only deeply saddened all of us, but it has also become one of the most painful manifestations of the unjust order we stand against across the world, Erdogan said.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet urged US authorities to deal with “entrenched and pervasive racial discrimination” in America’s criminal justice system.

“Procedures must change, prevention systems must be put in place, and above all police officers who resort to excessive use of force, should be charged and convicted for the crimes committed”, the High Commissioner said in a statement.

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