Black House Autonomous Zone changes hands 3 times: flashbangs, pepper spray and arrests late-night

Video-protesters take BLM Plaza back from police 2 min 40 sec

On the 23ed of June, Mayor Bowser's cops forcibly drove protesters on BLM Plaza back to 16th and I sts. Protesters held out until late in the night cops abandoned their position and protesters retook Black Lives Matter Plaza. Cops took it back again sometime after 3AM.

When cops initially took 16th st from protesters, homeless people's possessions outside St John's church were stolen and thrown away and access to St John's church was illegally denied. When protesters reclaimed the area, they found that a massive fence has now been erected at Lafayette Sq-and around the church. Not long after that, police opened up w flashbangs, pepper spray, swarming bike cops and multiple arrests but it took them many hours to again take the area from protesters.

During the day and evening there were multiple marches and 395/295 was blockaded twice. In the evening things grew tense, fireworks were shot off and two American flags were burned. Shortly after midnight(shift change?), the cops suddenly abandoned their position at 16th and I, at which point protesters instantly poured back into the space.

Not long after that, some kind of incident drew protesters E on H st towards the cops, ending in bike cops reinforcing other cops and at least one arrest in an unknown incident on Vermont Ave. At least three other arrests in a second incident were confirmed by video. Witnesses reported these were unlawful arrests in violation of the targetted people's rights. Twitter reports indicate police once again used pepper spray indiscriminately (for the second day in a row), tear gas as well (again despite the CDC guidance not to use weapons that cause coughing) and fired flashbangs as well. Even corporate media representatives were reportedly maced.

A flashbang can be heard detonating in the twitter video of the arrests. Flashbangs (which use high explosive) can be distinguished by sound from fireworks, as the initial pulse of the explosion is much "harder" or stronger (higher pressure) with the detonation of a flashbang's supersonic high explosive charge than the confined combusion of black powder based fireworks.

Sometime after 3AM, police again drove protesters out of Black Lives Matter Plaza and after sunrise the battle lines had returned roughly to their position as of two days earlier

Video-US flag burned shortly before cops yielded 16th st back to protesters 27 sec