‘Occupy LA’ protestors defy order to evacuate by Sunday midnight

November 28th, 2011 - 7:53 pm ICT by Aishwarya Bhatt  

Los Angeles, Nov 28 (THAINDIAN NEWS) The Occupy LA protesters have defied an order to evacuate the City Hall by Sunday midnight. With the deadline passed, the Los Angeles Police Department has announced that they have moved into tactical alert to get the protesters out.

The LAPD says with the deadline over, the protesters who refused to move will be arrested. That promises to bring the police in confrontation with the protesters who have sworn to remain at the camp. The protesters have been occupying the City Hall for eight weeks.

Speaking ahead of the deadline, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said the city will no longer tolerate the protests. He warned the protesters to take the easy way out by dispersing.

In a statement from the office of the mayor, Villaraigosa said that, “While Occupy L.A. has brought needed attention to the economic disparities in our country, an encampment on City Hall grounds is simply not sustainable indefinitely.”

Reuters reports that police in riot gears are closing in on the protesters. Hundreds of protesters are camped outside the City Hall. The report says the protesters seem to have been emboldened as the police get closer. Some of the protesters have armed themselves with nose masks anticipating the use of tear gas by the police.

There are about 400 tents at the camp site with nearly 800 people staying there.

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