Westminster brought to a standstill as a crowd chants 'hands up don't shoot' in Black Lives Matter protest

Westminster was brought to a standstill as a crowd chanted "hands up don't shoot" in a Black Lives Matter protest in central London, against the killing of two black men in the United States.

Brixton was brought to a standstill as a crowd chanting "black lives matter" and "hands up, don't shoot" took to the streets on Saturday.

The crowd of approximately 300 people gathered in Windrush Square before marching to the nearby police station, and then through neighbouring streets.

It followed a protest in central London on Friday after the shooting of black men by US police in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and St Paul, Minnesota. Those deaths were followed by the reprisal shooting of five police officers in Dallas, Texas.

Demonstrators later brought traffic to a halt by staging a sit-down protest in the middle of Brixton High Street.

There was a low-key police presence as the crowd chanted "racist police, off our streets".