An Australian reporter and cameraman have been assaulted by US police while reporting on protests outside the White House.
Network Seven cameraman Tim Myers was hit with a riot shield and punched in the face, while reporter Amelia Brace was hit with a truncheon.
Both were shot with rubber bullets and tear-gassed.
“I could barely breathe and it is really hard to continue speaking during that,” Brace said afterwards.
“I also got a rubber bullet to the backside and Tim got one at the back of the neck, so we will have a few bruises tomorrow.”
She also said Myers had been “smashed” by police.
‘He shielded me from it, so I’m very grateful for him,” she said.
“There really just was no escape at that point. We had the National Guard behind us and the police coming through and there was no way for us to go, so there was no choice but to hide in a corner hoping that they passed by, and as you can see from those pictures, they did not.”
The confrontation came as police cleared a peaceful protest outside the White House so President Donald Trump could walk to a nearby historic church after announcing he had ordered the military onto US streets to quell days of demonstrations following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
There have been numerous reports of assaults on journalists and camera crews at protests in various US cities in the past week.
The Nine Network’s US correspondent, Tim Arvier, and his crew were arrested in violence in Minneapolis on Saturday (US time).
On Saturday, the Committee to Protect Journalists said it appeared media crews had been targeted by some police officers and protesters.
“Targeted attacks on journalists, media crews and news organizations covering the demonstrations show a complete disregard for their critical role in documenting issues of public interest and are an unacceptable attempt to intimidate them,” program director Carlos Martínez de la Serna told USA Today.
The CPJ said it was investigating reports from Louisville, Kentucky, Las Vegas, Atlanta and Washington, DC. It said it had heard of up to 68 incidents of journalists being arrested, assaulted or having their equipment damaged while covering the chaos.
Federal Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese was concerned the Sunrise crew was attacked by police while doing their jobs.
Mr Albanese said Australia’s ambassador to the US should make representations on their behalf.
-with AAP
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