Pro-choice activists are tear gassed as they breach Arizona Capitol building

Arizona’s Capitol building was besieged by pro-abortion protesters Friday night, forcing riot cops to fire tear gas to disperse the angry crowd in the wake of Roe v. Wade being overturned. 

Lawmakers working to complete their 2022 session said they were effectively held-hostage inside, and eventually huddled to a safe location, as SWAT team operatives worked to disperse the gathered crowds.  

KPHO-TV reported the officers opened fire when several anti-abortion protesters started banging on glass doors of the building.

Arizona is one of eight states where abortion clinics stopped performing procedures after the decision was released Friday.

That is because a pre-Roe law banning all terminations was automatically re-enacted after Friday’s Supreme Court ruling.

Arizona’s Republican Governor Doug Ducey insists a bill he previously passed, banning abortions after 15 weeks, still stands.

But Ducey’s assertion can only be settled in the state’s courts – and some hardline Republicans are already suggesting the original ban on all terminations should remain in place.

Authorities said there were no injuries or arrests. 

The incident sent Senate lawmakers into the basement of the building for about 20 minutes, said Democratic Sen. Martin Quezada. 

Tear gas coming from officers firing out of the Arizona State Capitol in Phoenix is visible as pro choice protesters march outside

Arizona is one of eight states where abortion clinics stopped performing procedures after the decision was released Friday

Arizona’s Capitol building was besieged by pro-abortion protesters Friday night, forcing riot cops to fire tear gas to disperse the angry crowd in the wake of Roe v. Wade being overturned

Lawmakers working to complete their 2022 session said they were effectively held-hostage inside, and eventually huddled to a safe location, as SWAT team operatives worked to disperse the gathered crowds

Officers opened fire when several anti-abortion protesters started banging on glass doors of the building

Arizona protesters start to move away as the state police begins tear gassing people

Riot police surround the Arizona Capitol after protesters reached the front of the Arizona Sentate building

With tear gas in the air, a large number of police surround the Arizona Capitol after protesters reached the front of the AZ Senate building after the Supreme Court overturned the landmark Roe v. Wade abortion decision Friday

KPHO-TV reported the officers opened fire when several anti-abortion protesters started banging on glass doors of the building

Abortion rights protesters banged on the walls of the capitol building in Arizona while holding signs

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Stinging tear gas wafted through the Capitol afterward, forcing the Senate to move its proceedings to a hearing room instead of the Senate chamber.

Thousands of spirited demonstrators took to the streets Friday in cities nationwide to protest the overturning of Roe v. Wade. 

Most carried signs, chanted slogans and listened to speeches.

In New York, at least 25 people have been arrested after demonstrations across the city Friday, according to the New York Post. A police officer estimated that about 17,000 people showed up to a march at Washington Square Park in Lower Manhattan.

Similar arrests were made in Los Angeles, according to KTLA, while protesters in Chicago, Washington and other huge cities also took place.

Thousands also marched in Grant Park in Chicago, shutting down several streets according to NBC5 Chicago. Illinois’ billionaire Governor JB Pritzker was in attendance.

Marchers were also arrested after clashes with police turned violent

One activist sets off a smoke flare amid abortion rights protest on the 110 Freeway in Downtown Los Angeles

People in Washington, Chicago and other cities also marched Friday evening

It comes as tens of thousands descended on streets across the US amid mixed reactions at the Supreme Court tearing up Roe v Wade and handing the rights to abortions back to states after nearly 50 years.

NEW YORK CITY  

Furious pro-choice demonstrators took to the streets in cities including Washington DC, Phoenix, New York City and Los Angeles as they begged the Biden administration to find a way to overrule the decision.

A group was spotted burning the flag of the United States in the capital while others gathered outside Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas’ home.

In Arizona, cops were forced to fire tear gas at protestors after they appeared to breach the State Senate building in Phoenix, with staff evacuated but no one reported to have been injured.

And at least 25 were arrested in New York City after around 17,000 descended on Washington Square Park before marching through the streets to Grand Central Station, Times Square, and Bryant Park.

They also stopped outside News Corp headquarters – home to Fox News and The New York Post – and yelled ‘Burn it down! Burn it down! F–k Tucker Carlson!’ Vandals also sprayed ‘F*** Fox’ on the side of the building.

Thousands marched through Manhattan in New York City on Friday, even ending up at News Corp headquarters, home of the New York Post and Fox News

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In New York, at least 25 people have been arrested after demonstrations across the city Friday

Abortion rights activists march from Washington Square Park to Bryant Park in Lower Manhattan in protest

LOS ANGELES 

The LAPD reported protesters throwing bottles of water and rocks were being thrown at officers during demonstrations.

ABC7 reported that there were protesters throwing what appeared to be fireworks at police. They also spotted a man briefly being dragged away from the demonstrations. 

At one point, authorities declared an unlawful assembly just after 9 p.m., meaning protesters were forced to leave or be put under arrest, with officers not allowing reporters to witness what happened, according to the LA Times. 

Earlier in the afternoon, the crowd marched onto the northbound 110 Freeway, temporarily shutting down traffic. 

Protests in Los Angeles made it all the way out to the city’s freeway, momentarily shutting down traffic

CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA 

A pickup truck plowed into pro-choice protesters in Iowa as demonstrations turned violent.

The black vehicle drove through the group of activists in Cedar Rapids despite them screaming at it to stop and hammering the hood and window.

One appeared to get caught in front of it and narrowly avoided being run over before the driver sped off during the shocking exchange on Friday night.

Another had her foot run over and was left howling in pain. And a third was flung to the floor as he drove away, suffering bruises and scrapes.

The black pickup truck was captured on social media in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on Friday evening shunting the crowd

Two people appeared to be in front of the black pickup as it continued driving through the crowd, despite screams. One of the women, in the white t-shirt and jeans, told DailyMail.com about wrestling with the driver and yelling at him to stop

As two protesters were shunted by the vehicle, the woman, Alexis Russell, screamed through the window for the driver to stop

The driver continued accelerating, despite the protesters all around him and in front

The driver then sped off. Cedar Rapids police say they are investigating

Russell, in the white t-shirt and jeans, can be seen tussling with the driver of the pickup truck

The driver pushed two people along the road at the front of his vehicle, while Russell yelled at him to stop by his window

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Russell is seen marching through Cedar Rapids on Friday with her fellow protesters, shortly before the crowd was rammed by the pickup truck

Alexis Russell, 30, saw the man driving his pickup into the crowd, and ran over to urge him to stop. ‘I was standing on a sidewalk facing the road,’ she told DailyMail.com. ‘So as soon as I saw it I didn’t even hesitate.’

In the footage, Russell, in her white t-shirt and jeans, with long black hair, can be seen trying desperately to get the driver to stop, as two people are shunted along the road on the hood of his car. 

‘I ran over there, tried to grab the steering wheel,’ she said. ‘I was like – what the hell are you doing? You are literally hurting these people.

‘They are doing nothing. ‘He grabbed my sign through the window and ripped it. I reached in for the steering wheel, and he grabbed my sign, but didn’t hold onto it so I have both pieces.’

Up until that point, Russell said the march of 300-400 people had been peaceful – although many other motorists in staunchly-Republican Iowa had ‘flipped us off’ as they drove past.

A protester lights a cigarette on a burning American Flag while marching with abortion-rights activists

Abortion rights activists wear tape on their mouth with the words ‘Second Class Citizen’ while protesting

Abortion rights activists rally outside of the US Supreme Court in Washington

Stacey Walker, 34, a local politician who sits on the board of Linn County Board of Supervisors, told DailyMail.com that the march had been ‘pretty uneventful’ as it wound through the city past main landmarks, and drew to a close.

He said there had been some hecklers, but nothing out of the ordinary. He then became aware of the commotion, and saw an aide from his office being pushed along the road – one of two people being shunted by the pickup truck.

Walker sprinted to the car, and in social media videos can be seen yelling at the driver. It was pretty evident the driver didn’t intend to stop,’ Walker said. ‘I’m guessing this gentleman did not agree with what we were doing.

The Supreme Court on Friday struck down the right to abortion in a seismic ruling that shredded five decades of constitutional protections.

The conservative-dominated court overturned the landmark 1973 Roe v Wade decision enshrining a woman’s right to an abortion, saying individual states can restrict or ban the procedure themselves.