POLICE HAVE BEGUN clearing out the Occupy Oakland encampment after sending several warnings to protesters.
Oakland police and officers from several other San Francisco Bay area cities encircled the downtown encampment at 4.30am (PST) before moving in an hour and a half later.
Police were seen escorting handcuffed protesters away from the site.
The move comes a day after police drove demonstrators from camps in Portland, during which 50 people were arrested.
Last week, calls for the Oakland camp to be closed off came after a man was shot and killed nearby.
Oakland police issued a fourth cease and desist order to campers on Sunday night telling them to move on.
On the official Occupy Oakland site, a blog post from Saturday urges supporters to go to the camp to help “keep our movement strong”.
The most recent post on its official Twitter feed reads:
In its live blog, the Oakland Tribune reported that protesters from Occupy Oakland had gathered in the intersection of Broadway and 14th St and that 20 protesters had been arrested so far.
Some protesters sang We Shall Overcome as police raided the encampment.
Meanwhile, the Iraq veteran who was injured during clashes between police and demonstrators in Oakland posted a message on Google+ yesterday, where he said he is “feeling a lot better” but has “a long road in front of me “.
Scott Olsen posted a picture of himself looking happy despite having facial injuries and wearing a neck brace.
He said his speech “is coming back but I’ve got a lot of work to do with rehab” and said people will be hearing more from him in the near future.
- Additional reporting by AP
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