Thousands join Black Lives Matter protest outside US Embassy in London

Demonstrators outside Downing Street during a Black Lives Matter protest in London, following the death of George Floyd who died in police custody in Minneapolis, London, Britain, June 7, 2020. (Reuters)

Police officers and demonstrators outside Downing Street during a Black Lives Matter protest in London, following the death of George Floyd who died in police custody in Minneapolis, London, Britain, June 7, 2020. (Reuters)

Police officers outside Downing Street during a Black Lives Matter protest in London, following the death of George Floyd who died in police custody in Minneapolis, London, Britain, June 7, 2020. (Reuters)

Police scuffle with protesters during the Black Lives Matter protest rally in London, Sunday, June 7, 2020, in response to the recent killing of George Floyd by police officers in Minneapolis, USA, that has led to protests in many countries and across the US. (AP)

A Police officer receives medical attention after Police clashed with demonstrators in Whitehall during a Black Lives Matter protest in London, following the death of George Floyd who died in police custody in Minneapolis, London, Britain, June 7, 2020. (Reuters)

Police clash with demonstrators on Whitehall during a Black Lives Matter protest in London, following the death of George Floyd who died in police custody in Minneapolis, London, Britain, June 7, 2020. (Reuters)

A demonstrator reacts infront of graffiti on a statue of Winston Churchill in Parliament Square during a Black Lives Matter protest in London, following the death of George Floyd who died in police custody in Minneapolis, London, Britain, June 7, 2020. (Reuters)

A protester holds a placard as she sits in a window ledge on Whitehall, near Downing Street in central London after attending a demonstration, on June 7, 2020, organised to show solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement in the wake of the killing of George Floyd. (AFP)

• Authorities urged protesters not to gather in London on Sunday due to the risk of the spread of the coronavirus

LONDON: Tens of thousands took to the streets of London on Sunday, rallying for a second day running to condemn police brutality after the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis, some wearing face masks to protect against COVID-19 bearing the slogan “racism is a virus”.

On Saturday, thousands of protesters had gathered in central London in a demonstration that was peaceful but that ended with small numbers of people clashing with mounted police near Prime Minister Boris Johnson's Downing Street residence.

London Police chief Cressida Dick said 27 officers had been injured in "shocking and completely unacceptable" assaults during anti-racism protests in central London this week, including 14 on Saturday.

Two were seriously hurt and an officer who fell from her horse underwent surgery in hospital.

Both Dick and health minister Matt Hancock urged protesters not to gather in London again on Sunday, warning they risked spreading the coronavirus.

But demonstrators ignored this to pack the road outside the U.S. Embassy on the south bank of the River Thames.

Journalists on the scene estimated the crowds as numbering in the tens of thousands.

After an hour, the protesters began to march across the river in the direction of parliament, pausing on the bridge to take the knee and chant "justice, now". Some gathered in Parliament Square while others massed outside Downing Street.

#WATCH: #BlackLivesMatterUK protesters in #Bristol pull down statue of #slave trader Edward #Colston #colstonstatue https://t.co/trLr9dBzZZ pic.twitter.com/SlwMKr55gt

— Arab News (@arabnews) June 7, 2020

Police said 29 people were arrested during Saturday's protest in London for offences including violent disorder and assault on emergency service workers.

Pauline Nandoo, 60, said she had been protesting about racism since the 1970s and the images of violence at the end of Saturday’s protest had not deterred her.

"There’s children of all ages and older adults here," said Nandoo, who was with her brother and 13-year-old daughter.

"They are going to experience what we have experienced and we have to try to make that not happen."