5 shot at #BlackLivesMatter protest, suspects reported to be 3 white supremacists

A #BlackLivesMatter protest in Minneapolis, Minnesota, was marred by violence as five protesters were shot, allegedly by racist counter-protesters who attempted to disrupt the rally held in honor of Jamar Clark, shot in the head earlier by police.

Outrage over Clark’s death has been seething for several days now, inflaming racial tensions. The police had last week used chemical irritants to disperse the crowd protesting Clark’s shooting death on November 15. The demonstrations then lasted through Wednesday, when police broke up the activists’ makeshift camp outside the department’s Fourth Precinct, citing safety reasons.

READ MORE: Police use chemicals on protesters as officers who shot Jamar Clark in head named

Outrage over Clark’s death has been seething for several days now, inflaming racial tensions. The police had last week used chemical irritants to disperse the crowd protesting Clark’s shooting death on November 15. The demonstrations then lasted through Wednesday, when police broke up the activists’ makeshift camp outside the department’s Fourth Precinct, citing safety reasons.

A total of five demonstrators were injured on Monday, two seriously, a block away from the Minneapolis 4th Precinct Police Department, where a new camp has since appeared.

The incident took place around 10:41PM local time, the police announced on Twitter early Tuesday morning.

The search is now on for three white suspects in the shooting, thought to be members of a white supremacist movement.

The two men injured by them are alive and have been hospitalized.

According to The Washington Post, a recording of the incident shows people fleeing as gunfire erupted, some screaming for an ambulance. A young black man could also be seen nursing his gunshot wound to the leg as fellow protesters and nearby authorities rushed to help.

A witness and protester, Oluchi Omeoga, told the AP the three attackers wore masks during the protest and that “they weren’t supposed to be there.” At one point they began walking away, with a few of the original protesters following them. When the three reached a corner they allegedly pulled out guns and began shooting at the protesters.

Jie Wronski-Riley, another demonstrator, told the Minneapolis Star Tribune that the protesters tried to move the opposing group, who was on scene every day taunting the first group. He added that the scene turned “really chaotic, really fast” after the shooting started.

The activists have been camping in front of the precinct for a week now, refusing to leave until their demands are met. These include the release of police video tapes of Clark’s shooting, and for the two officers responsible for his death – Mark Ringgenberg and Dustin Schwarze – to be brought to justice.

Both officers have been on standard paid administrative leave since the shooting of Clark took place.

Earlier this week, the state’s Bureau of Criminal Apprehension said it was collecting all possible video material taken at the scene in order to establish the chronology. So far, no footage has shown the incident in its entirety, investigators said last week.

What is known so far, according to authorities, is that Jamar Clark was interfering with paramedics who tried to help a victim that he had reportedly assaulted.

Police was then called to the scene. In a statement on November 17, they say “At some point during an altercation that ensued between the officers and the individual, an officer discharged his weapon, striking the individual.”

Details about the incident remain unclear as information is pieced together. Some witnesses say that Clark was handcuffed when shot, but police claim otherwise.