Nights of fire and rage follow US police shooting

Arsonists torched much of a black business district in the city of Kenosha, Wisconsin, triggered by the wounding of an African-American shot in the back by police as his three young sons looked on.

In a second night of violence, police clashed with protesters defying a dusk-to-dawn curfew on Monday night and into yesterday in Kenosha, close to where police gunned down Jacob Blake on Sunday.

Blake, 29, was in stable condition after surgery.

The incident, the latest case to focus attention on police treatment of African Americans, unleashed outrage in Kenosha, 65 kilometers south of Milwaukee.

The shooting occurred three months after the death of a black man in Minneapolis, George Floyd, while in police custody, sparking nationwide protests.

Several hours into the curfew the demonstration turned violent. Buildings and vehicles were set ablaze and police fired tear gas, rubber bullets and smoke bombs.

Many of the fires destroyed the black business district, said protester Porche Bennett, who claimed the instigators were white and "people from out of town."

The clashes prompted the deployment of National Guard troops to the city.

REUTERS