Protesters say eviction will only make them stronger after raid on protest camp involving more than 1,400 police officers

This article is more than 8 years old

This article is more than 8 years old

Police clad in riot gear moved in to evict Occupy Los Angeles protesters from their camp at city hall on Wednesday morning – two days after a deadline passed for demonstrators to leave.

Los Angeles police chief Charlie Beck told reporters at an early morning press conference at the campsite that 1,400 police were involved, and estimated that 200 arrests were made with "absolutely minimal force."

Speaking to reporters selected by the Los Angeles Police Department at the same press conference, the city's mayor, Antonio Villaraigosa, said he had "never seen more professional, restrained force."

"Every one of us should be proud of the police for professional way how officers handled the demonstration," he said, without answering further questions.

Villaraigosa ordered Occupy Los Angeles, which began on 1 October, to leave the city hall grounds by Monday morning at 12.01am, but a strong show of defiance from protesters prompted police to delay the raid until Wednesday.

While the hundreds of police officers cleared out the park of the remaining 20 occupiers, about 500 people gathered at the intersection of 1st Street and Main Street to confront police and show solidarity to those still at city hall.

Some people broke through the many blockades set up on roads leading to the campsite, chanting "We are peaceful" and "Let us through".

Despite the raid, some protesters said it only made the movement stronger.

"It's just a happy day today because even though we got kicked out, we're still together," said Demi Chae Moore, who gathered with the hundreds on 1st Street and Main Street before the police pursued them around 2am and pushed them into the city's Little Tokyo district.

However, tensions between supporters of the movement made headway as the police dispersed them from the city hall area, with some arguing that the protesters stay at the intersection while others marched east on 1st Street.

The arguments and sniping among some Occupiers prompted a young woman to passionately urge them to stop the infighting.

"We have to love each other because we are all 100%," shouted Victoria Buckner, alluding to the 'We are the 99%' slogan used by supporters of the Occupy movement.

Although the police claimed that the police refrained from using strong force, protester Oscar Pale claimed that an officer struck him in the chest as other officers tried to push marchers on Alameda Steet away from the area.

"I put myself in front of the line to be a peacemaker, and I told the officer to come on and do something, but he came at me and threatened me," Pale said. "He hit me twice in the chest with his baton."

Another protester, Melissa Balin, attempted to cross one of the police blockades, but officers threatened her and forced her out.

"Four officers shoved me because they wouldn't let me pass," she said.

At one point, protesters marching around the police perimeter on Alameda Street blocked a caravan Los Angeles County Sheriff's buses – possibly for the transport of arrested Occupiers to processing centres.

In preparation for the co-ordinated raid on the Occupy Los Angeles site, police were on a "city-wide tactical alert" and shut down streets leading to city hall. The roadblocks dismayed residents in the downtown area, as well as bar patrons and people who wanted to show solidarity with the movement.

"They won't let us cross the line because it's a police state" shouted Cris Servellon, 29, a Los Angeles resident and a supporter of the Occupy movement, who waved a printout of the United States Constitution to police officers.

"Don't restrict people – we are more powerful than the government."