George Floyd: Minneapolis council pledges to dismantle police department

A majority of Minneapolis City Council has pledged to dismantle the local police department, a significant move amid nationwide protests sparked by George Floyd's death last month.
Nine of the 13 councillors said a "new model of public safety" would be created in a city where law enforcement has been accused of racism.
Mayor Jacob Frey earlier opposed the move, drawing boos from the crowds.
Anti-racism rallies have been held after Floyd's death in police custody.
However, security measures across the country were lifted on Sunday as unrest started to ease.
Mr Floyd's funeral is scheduled for Tuesday in Houston, his home city before he moved to Minneapolis. The protests started after video emerged showing the 46-year-old African American pinned to the floor, with a white police officer kneeling on his neck for almost nine minutes.
Officer Derek Chauvin has been dismissed and charged with murder. Three other officers who were at the scene have also been sacked and charged with aiding and abetting.
What did Minneapolis City Council members say?
The nine councillors read a statement to hundreds of protesters on Sunday.
"We are here because here in Minneapolis and in cities across the United States it is clear that our existing system of policing and public safety is not keeping our communities safe," City Council President Lisa Bender was quoted as saying.
"Our efforts at incremental reform have failed. Period."
Ms Bender said details of the overhaul plan needed to be discussed further, adding that she would try to shift police funding towards community based strategies.
Meanwhile, councillor Alondra Cano tweeted that "a veto-proof majority" in the council had agreed that the city police department "is not reformable and that we're going to end the current policing system".The process of setting up a new community-led body is likely to take several months, BBC North America correspondent Peter Bowes says.
The reform plan in Minneapolis also sets up what is likely to be a long and complicated debate over new ways of policing across the US.
More on George Floyd's death

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio had already said he would divert money from the city's police department to social services.
"Defund the police" was a rallying cry during the latest street protests, that occasionally spilled into violence and looting.
"Defunding" advocates have for years been condemning what they describe as the aggressive militarised policing in the US.
They argue that police departments' budgets should be slashed and funds diverted to social programmes to avoid unnecessary confrontation and heal the racial divided.
source: www.jsportnewsgh.com