IMF protestors arrested for carrying explosives
Four protestors arrested Saturday during the demonstrations outside the International Monetary Fund building in Washington, D.C., yesterday were charged with carrying explosives.
Coffee cans full of nails and blasting caps were found along with smoke bombs in backpacks carried by the two men and two women, who were apprehended leaving an alley next to the IMF building. The four have refused to identify themselves to authorities.
Police said the devices could have caused extensive injury if detonated in a crowd of people. Some reports initially alleged protestors carried only fireworks, but police explained the nails and blasting caps were rigged for more sinister purposes.
Officials announced Sunday that they still were unsure what the protestors had planned to do with the explosives.
Protestors encountered heavy law enforcement presence in Washington over the weekend. Rallies were dramatically smaller than expected, with only a few thousand demonstrators turning out for events expected to draw 20,000.
Leaders of the demonstrations promised to shut down the city of Washington and cause enough chaos to seriously disrupt the IMF meetings. Instead, the demonstrations remained mostly small and peaceful, and the police contained the few rowdy protestors who showed up.
Despite the turnout, protest leaders declared the weekend a success, saying they had drawn attention to the important issues at stake in the IMF discussions and put pressure on IMF and global economic leaders.
IMF spokesmen announced the meetings were unaffected by protestor efforts. They denied claims that the rallies caused change in any policy decisions, including a change regarding international bankruptcies.
Demonstrators protested causes ranging from U.S. involvement in Iraq to international AIDS research. Events in Washington were mirrored in several European cities.
-- Compiled by Nick Chapin
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