UPDATE: Two people have been arrested following disturbances that took place in Mill Lane, near the Retro Lounge, during the course of the rally yesterday.
A 22 year old man from Caerphilly was arrested for assault, whilst a 33 year old man from Pontypridd was arrested for affray. Neither of the two men arrested were from the rally group. Both men have been bailed pending further enquiries and police are speaking with witnesses and examining footage of the event.
Chief Inspector Dan Howe said: “The police were there to ensure the safety of everyone involved and the vast majority of people behaved in a calm and sensible way, however extra officers attended to provide reassurance to the community”.
“Unfortunately not all of those in Cardiff yesterday afternoon were well-behaved and violence broke out with a small minority which disrupted an otherwise peaceful demonstration”.
“Disruption was kept to a minimum and the rally went on to conclude peacefully and we are grateful for the support we received from the local community.”
He added: “We recognise that this was an alarming and violent incident. It was however an isolated occurrence and was not representative of the whole event”.
“Whilst a protest in the previous week drew smaller numbers, and passed without incident, Saturday saw a larger scale event which also coincided with a busy Saturday afternoon in the city”.
“Officers in Cardiff police this scale of event regularly and the violence that occurred is an exceptional occurrence, but one that needs to be examined. Incidents of this nature go through a thorough debrief process by South Wales Police and we will be doing that with our partners and the organisers over the next few days”.
Officers are appealing for anyone with any additional footage of the events to retain the recording and contact South Wales Police on 101 quoting reference number 1400271933.
South Wales Police have confirmed that around 1,500 people took part in yesterday’s protest march through the city centre of Cardiff.
The rally, initiated by Cardiff Stop the War Coalition, gathered at Cardiff City Hall around 2.30pm yesterday afternoon.
During the course of the procession, disorder broke out on Mill Lane and St Mary Street in two separate incidents, which were not directly connected to the rally.
Two people have been arrested for public order and assault offences following the incident on Mill Lane.
Police say that the disturbance on St Mary Street is presently being investigated to establish if any offences have occurred.
They are continuing with their investigations into both incidents through recovery of CCTV footage and enquiries with witnesses, however South Wales Police would like anyone with information to come forward.
Anyone who was in the vicinity of Mill Lane or St Mary Street this afternoon, and witnessed either of the incidents, is asked to contact South Wales Police on 101 quoting reference number 1400270917.
