(Natural News) Antifa and their Black Lives Matter allies in Portland, Oregon have attempted to create an autonomous zone in the city. The zone – which the rioters attempted to call the Chinook Land Autonomous Territory (CLAT) – mirrors that which was established in Seattle in June.

Rioters began erecting tents and setting up barricades in Lownsdale Square in the downtown Portland neighborhood on Tuesday, July 14. The park is right next to several courthouses, including the Multnomah County Justice Center, where a majority of Antifa and BLM’s nightly clashes with the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) occur, and the Pioneer Courthouse, a federal courthouse that officers from Homeland Security are trying to protect. The square was also home to the Occupy Portland encampments that were erected in 2011. (Related: Antifa rioters in Portland attempt to create another autonomous zone – they instead turn the city into a WAR ZONE.)

Chinook Land Autonomous Territory established after Portland police left the area

The PPB said that the demonstrators began their assembly at Revolution Hall in Southeast Portland on Tuesday before they marched downtown and gathered in front of the Pioneer Courthouse Square, several blocks north from Lownsdale Square. This event was regarded as generally peaceful, with several speakers talking about racial equality and reforming law enforcement. After the demonstrators listened to the speakers, the crowd either dispersed or reconvened in front of the Justice Center, where the peaceful assembly quickly transformed into a violent riot.

At around 9:15 p.m., the PPB said that the mob at the Justice Center began attempting to illegally occupy the area by standing in the middle of the road to block traffic through several streets. They then set up a series of barricades there to cordon off the area using “industrial kitchen appliances, road blockades and flashing traffic signs.”

The rioters also started a fire near where a famous 120-year-old statue of an elk once stood. Several other fires were also lit. Fortunately, none of these spread to private property.

At around 1 a.m. on Wednesday, July 15, the rioters left their barricades “in an organized effort” and walked to the Central Precinct Building of the PPB, where they began harassing officers who were at the end of their shifts.

Around the same time, other elements of the PPB removed some of the barricades of the rioters. However, these were simply rebuilt after the officers disengaged and the rioters returned to the area.

Reports show that the rioters also attacked the officers by shining lasers into their eyes and throwing projectiles such as glass bottles. The PPB reported that they did not use tear gas and crowd control munitions such as rubber bullets. They also did not attempt to forcibly disperse the demonstrators.

Furthermore, after the PPB left the area, the rioters immediately started fighting with each other. One person reportedly tried to burn down one of the barricades, which caused an altercation with another person tried to put out the fire while several other people began rebuilding parts of the barricade.

The crowd dissipated over several hours, and by 5 a.m. only around a dozen demonstrators were still on the newly-erected barricades.