Melbourne cop yells 'come on, pu**ies' in heated confrontation with 'hostile and aggressive' protesters - before officers fired pepper balls and 'bean bag rounds' at the crowd
Dramatic footage has captured the moment a Melbourne police officer goaded protestors during the city's anti-lockdown rally on Saturday.
The officer mocked demonstrators as he stood behind a row of his colleagues holding riot shields in Melbourne's CBD.
'Here we go boys, come on p***ies, here we go,' he could be heard saying from behind his face mask.
Moments earlier a protester had told the officers: 'We don't want to be here, we want to be one country.'
The confrontation was filmed as more than 4,000 protesters rallied on the streets of Melbourne against tough lockdown restrictions imposed by the Daniel Andrews government to stop the spread of Covid-19.
Chaotic scenes erupted as protesters clashed with riot police, who fired pepper ball rounds and OC foam canisters to disperse the angry crowd.
A Victoria Police spokeswoman said police 'were left with no choice but to use all tactics available to them.'
Scores of anti-lockdown protestors swarmed Melbourne's CBD on Saturday in chaotic scenes
Police were draped in riot gear as tensions mounted by the minute in Melbourne's CBD
Police arrest a protester during an anti-lockdown rally in Melbourne on Saturday
In NSW, police arrested 47 people and fined more than 260 in relation to protests across the state
'For the first time during lockdown protests, police were forced to use a range of non-lethal options including pepper ball rounds and OC foam cannisters in an effort to disperse the crowd,' she said.
'The behaviour seen by police was so hostile and aggressive that they were left with no choice but to use all tactics available to them.'
One man who said he was hit by rubber bullets during the protest hit out at the police response, claiming the projectiles could have seriously injured a pregnant woman or a child.
'If this "Beanbag shot" from two metres is all the suffering we need to endure to save our children, then I’d take it every single day of the week,' he wrote on Instagram as he shared a picture of bruises he suffered on his stomach.
'These weapons are potentially lethal in a crowd situation and should never be used from close range, particularly with children and pregnant ladies around.'
Six police officers were rushed to hospital after the protest, with two cops suffering suspected broken noses during the protest.
One man who said he was hit by rubber bullets during the protest hit out at the police response to the demonstration. He shared a picture of bruises on his belly to Instagram on Saturday
Another has a broken thumb and two officers had a concussion.
In chaotic scenes, Victorian police arrested 218 people and issued 236 fines - each totalling $5,452 - for health order breaches.
In NSW, police arrested 47 people and fined more than 260 in connection to protests across the state.
They also issued 137 tickets after stopping about 38,000 cars approaching the city.
One fired up cop (pictured behind riot officers) was heard telling his colleagues 'Here we go boys, c'mon pussies, here we go' in what were incredible scenes in Melbourne
Police were forced to use pepper spray and foam cannisters to subdue the angry mob of protestors in Melbourne's CBD
Protestors clashed with police as at least 4,000 Melbourne residents attended the Freedom march
Protestors were out in force in a number of Australian capital cities on Saturday (pictured, a man is arrested in Sydney on Saturday)
Police said a man, 32, who allegedly assaulted an officer was arrested, with a number of charges expected to be laid.
The constable was taken to hospital for head and neck injuries.
Deputy Commissioner Mal Lanyon said police are confident they identify more people as they trawl through CCTV and social media footage.
More than 2000 people also gathered in Brisbane City Botanic Gardens to rally against the lockdown and vaccine measures.
A protest was also staged in Cairns, in far north Queensland. A crowd of up to 700 protesters briefly took over the Cairns Esplanade to oppose the Covid-19 vaccination roll out and 'government control'.
A young protester with a sign during the Freedom protest in Melbourne on Saturday