Seattle autonomous zone dissolves after several nights of shootings: 'The CHOP project is now concluded'

The protest zone in Seattle that has been occupied by anti-police protesters for the past two weeks has mostly dissolved after several nights of shootings and calls from the mayor to end the protest, Fox News reported.

Leaders of the Capitol Hill Occupied Protest, formerly known as the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone, urged participants to continue their cause online.

"This morning's census finds fewer than two dozen clustered near the East Precinct," a statement from the CHOP Twitter account said. "Eleven additional people are at the Space Needle. Last night's BLM march had 71 participants, a number we expect to continue to drop. It is time we shift to the next phase of our organizing and move from direct action to virtual activism."

Image source: Twitter screenshot

The statement called for supporters to vote for Joe Biden for president and to support re-election efforts of Washington Gov. Jay Inslee (D) and Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan (D).

The CHOP was established after a week of protests following the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. After conflict between protesters and police officers, the Seattle Police Department abandoned its East Precinct and allowed protesters to occupy nine blocks of the city without opposition.

The CHOP was mostly a peaceful demonstration, but in recent nights a string of shootings, including one that killed a black teenager, disrupted the protests and caused some community leaders to pull their support for the protest. Even Durkan, who had publicly supported the protests, called for it to disperse after four shootings in three nights.

"Our community does not support the violence," Andre Taylor, an activist who works to reduce police violence, said, according to KOMO-TV. "'Oh, somebody just got shot but CHOP, CHOP, CHOP? Wait a minute, but you're just going to look over this black man that got killed over here? This young baby; this 19-year-old? No. No. You're going to pause and you're going to think about this black man because that's the reason you did it for."

Full statement from the CHOP Twitter:

Image source: Twitter screenshot