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Police were filmed swearing and hitting protesters when an anti-cuts rally in Manchester turned violent.

Mobile phone footage appeared to capture 17-year-old Saffron Hughes being struck on the head by an officer as she was led to a police van in handcuffs in Piccadilly Gardens.

She had been arrested on suspicion of public disorder after tearing police tape, but was later released without charge, reports the Manchester Evening News.

Her arrest comes two years after she was charged with obstructing a police officer at Barton Moss.

That case was dropped in a case her solicitor described as ‘abhorrent’.

Speaking of the moment she was arrested in Piccadilly, she said: “I think someone knocked the police man’s hat off and then he went for me.

“When I got to the police station they said it was a civil matter.”

Other protesters have complained that the policing of the demo on Tuesday night was disproportionate.

But police bosses say their officers came under hostile attack - with missiles thrown at them - and believe their response was proportionate.

Some protesters hurled missiles from the roof of Rice restaurant which hit officers and police vehicles, according to GMP.

Three protesters on the roof had to be escorted down as they were ‘drunk’, it was alleged.

In one video, a police officer with his baton drawn shouts ‘stand back, stand back, don’t f****** move’ at protesters gathered near the Queen Victoria statue.

Katrina Lawrence, 37, from Wigan, who had been taking part in the protest, said: “There were police officers forming a chain while people were playing Bob Marley and dancing.

“The police had their batons out and they started screaming.

“It was a really scary experience and completely disproportionate.

“We are lawfully allowed to protest against spending cuts.

“The police are obviously under that themselves and as a service are going to be faced with some really disgraceful cuts which will affect all of them.”

Police were called to Piccadilly Gardens around 8.30pm last night after eight protesters climbed on top of the Rice restaurant to unfurl a banner reading ‘We won’t pay for their crisis’.

Officers said some protesters then started throwing stones at officers from their position on top of the building.

They swiftly closed off the area - but then clashes broke out with around 100 other protesters who had been playing Bob Marley and dancing on the other side of the gardens.

Officers surrounded people in a cordon as they danced and drew their batons urging people to stay back.

Three men who had climbed onto the Rice restaurant were arrested on suspicion of affray and aggravated trespass.