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SYDNEY: More than 250 people who were protesting coronavirus lockdowns in Australia were arrested Saturday and many faced fines for defying health orders, authorities said.
At least seven police officers were treated for injuries after skirmishes broke out at some of the protests, which took place in multiple cities nationwide. The largest and most violent protest was in Melbourne. Many were organized by people in encrypted online chat groups.
Sydney has been in lockdown for two months, while Melbourne and the capital, Canberra, went into lockdown earlier this month. Under the rules of the lockdown, people are mostly confined to their homes and have limits placed on their social interactions.
Despite those measures, Sydney’s New South Wales state reported a record 825 new daily community infections on Saturday. Several cities are battling outbreaks of the highly contagious delta variant.
Protesters say the lockdowns should end, but authorities say they are necessary to suppress the spread of the virus and save lives.
In Melbourne, a crowd of about 4,000 mostly unmasked protesters let off flares, yelled and blasted music in the central city. Victoria state police arrested 218 people and issued more than 200 fines, each for more than 5,400 Australian dollars ($3,850).
Six Victoria state police officers were hospitalized and three people remained in custody for allegedly assaulting police. Officers used pepper spray on several people, saying in a statement they were left with no choice.
In New South Wales state, police said they arrested 47 people and fined more than 260 in relation to protests across the state. They also issued 137 tickets after stopping around 38,000 cars that were approaching the city.
New South Wales state police said a 32-year-old man who allegedly assaulted an officer was arrested and they expected to file charges. The officer was taken to an area hospital for head and neck injuries, authorities said.
New South Wales Deputy Commissioner Mal Lanyon said police expected to identify more people through CCTV and social media footage.
More than 2,000 people also gathered in Brisbane City Botanic Gardens to rally against the lockdown and vaccine measures, although Queensland state police said they didn’t make any arrests.
“Wake up sheeple,” read one sign at the Brisbane protest.