Ten charged after protests by EDL and UAF in Leicester

Ten people have been charged with a range of offences after trouble flared during two protests in Leicester.

Seventeen people were arrested on Saturday after about 1,000 English Defence League (EDL) supporters held a rally in the city and Unite Against Fascism (UAF) staged a rival protest.

Arrests were made amid sporadic violence between protesters and police.

The charges include assaulting a police officer, possession of an offensive weapon and public order offences.

Riot police were deployed after objects were thrown ahead of the main EDL rally, while trouble, including coaches being stoned, was reported as the rival events dispersed.

Officers said they would be studying CCTV footage for further evidence.

Three other people were arrested for public order offences by British Transport Police on a train from Leicester to Birmingham.

Maj John Ager, from The Salvation Army, said its base on Charles Street was used as a safehaven when problems arose.

"When there was a lot of trouble around the Salvation Army, at about four o'clock when some of the EDL members broke out of the police cordon, there were a lot of frightened individuals and I was having to go out to them and say 'Look, we have a place of safety where you can come."

Five others arrested have been bailed, one given a conditional discharge and another is still in custody.