Convicted U.S. intelligence leaker Chelsea Manning unleashed a tirade on police officers during Law Enforcement Appreciation Day, calling them “armed criminals” who needlessly kill civilians.

“F—k the police,” Ms. Manning, a transgender former Army intelligence analyst who was convicted in 2013 for leaking classified information while deployed in Iraq, tweeted Tuesday.

The foul-mouthed tweet included the hashtags #DisarmThePolice, #WeGotThis and #LawEnforcementAppreciationDay. It was retweeted 1,700 times but fetched more than 3,600 responses — many of them angry that Ms. Manning would insult police officers on a day meant for appreciation and remembrance.

Ms. Manning showed no signs of backing down.

“The worst armed criminals wear uniforms and carry shiny pieces of metal,” she wrote.

“Reminder: we live in a full blown domestic occupation,” she added, retweeting a message by Fox News listing the number of law enforcement personnel currently serving in the U.S.

“Police kill hundreds of people every year with absolute impunity,” Ms. Manning tweeted, adding, “Police and prosecutors steal more through ‘civil asset forfeiture’ than all ‘property crime’ combined.”

Ms. Manning, formerly Bradley Manning, was released from prison in May after former U.S. President Barack Obama commuted her 35-year sentence.

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