A FEMALE cop who crashed face-first into a set of traffic lights before being thrown from her horse during a Black Lives Matter protest suffered "nasty" injuries.
The officer - one of 14 cops injured as the largely-peaceful protest turned violent - was left with a collapsed lung and broken ribs, Mail Online reports.
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She is still in the hospital, but it is likely she will be off duty for four months, the MailOnline reported.
Today she was branded a "hero" by Metropolitan Police Federation chairman Ken Marsh, who revealed her injuries are not life-threatening.
He told BBC Breakfast: “She’s stable – she has some quite nasty injuries which she sustained. And the horse is fine.”
The chief continued: "I think my colleagues – as always – were absolute heroes… the abuse they took.
"They tried to facilitate the public behaviour… I had nothing but pride in what I saw. It was horrendous seeing my colleagues being injured."
Dramatic footage shows the woman crashing to the ground after her animal had bolted amid the violent unrest in Whitehall, London.
Some protesters had chucked missiles - including a bike - at the animal, leaving it spooked.
It managed to make its way back to the stables uninjured, police confirmed today.
Disturbing pictures from the scene, show the policewoman knocked unconscious as missiles are thrown by the angry mob.
The majority of yesterday's protests were peaceful, until tension escalated at about 7pm last night leading to 14 arrests, Met Police said.
Metropolitan Police Commissioner Cressida Dick said today she is “deeply saddened and depressed” that 14 officers were injured in “shocking” attacks during the clashes in London.
Images from the scene show a man pushing a bicycle towards a police horse before it bolted away.
The female officer riding the horse slammed into a traffic light was left lying on her back on the ground.
Police have not confirmed what spooked the horse, but said a full investigation would be underway.
Last night, the Met Police released a statement concerning the female cop who was knocked unconscious, saying: "The officer is currently in hospital, receiving treatment for her injuries which are not life-threatening.
"The officer fell from her horse, and we are examining the full circumstances of what took place.
“The horse, uninjured, made its own back to the stables nearby.”
Protesters light flares and and threw glass bottles as chaos escalated.
Officers in full riot gear and batons clashed with dozens of demonstrators last night as the London Mayor condemned the violence.
Sadiq Khan also tweeted: "To the tiny minority who were violent and threw glass bottles and lit flares - you endangered a safe and peaceful protest and let down this important cause."
KHAN CONDEMNS
Police said 14 people have been arrested for assault on police, criminal damage, making threats and an incident of dangerous driving near the US Embassy.
Superintendent Jo Edwards, spokesperson for policing yesterday’s demonstration, said: “We understand peoples’ passion to come and let their voice be heard, they protested largely without incident.
“Our officers have been professional and very restrained but there was a smaller group intent on violence towards police officers.
“Twenty-three officers have received injuries, doing their job, policing protest over the last few days, and that is totally unacceptable.
“There have been 14 arrests made today, but we expect that number to rise and there will be a post -event investigation carried out.”
Protests across the UK have largely been peaceful as thousands have come out against police brutality.
Demonstrations were held in Bristol and thousands of people descended on the US Embassy in London.
Activists in face masks are holding placards reading "I can't breathe" to echo the final words of Floyd after white police officer Derek Chauvin held him down by kneeling on his neck.
Others have taken a kneel in solidarity with those of who have accused police of brutality on a global scale.
In Bristol, Black Lives Matter protesters have pulled down a statue of a 17th Century slave trader.
The protesters then rolled it into the river after being dragged towards the water by a group of jubilent protesters.
In London, the Winston Churchill statue was defaced for a second day in a row.
Churchill's name was crossed out and in black spray paint 'was a racist' was written underneath.
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Yesterday, pictures showed police officers standing in front of the memorial with neon green graffiti defacing it on the 76th anniversary of D-Day.
It appears the world-famous memorial was defaced with letters ACAB - which is believed to stand for 'All Cops Are B******s'.
Other monuments were also damaged - including statues in Parliament Square daubed with the words "racist" and "f**k Boris".
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