Police and protesters clash over Republican convention

Almost a thousand people have been arrested in anti-Bush protests during the Republican Convention in New York.

In the worst clashes since the demonstrations began last week, riot police fought back a 1,000-strong crowd outside the Fox News Channel studios in Manhattan.

Officers used barricades to contain protesters denouncing what they called the network's Rightwing slant.

Police also announced the arrest of a 21-year-old Yale student after he entered a restricted area near vice-president Dick Cheney's booth at the convention, coming within 10 feet of him and shouting anti-war and anti-Bush slogans. Mr Cheney was never in any danger, authorities said.

Outside the hotel where Texas delegates are staying, more than 20 "Hallibacon" protesters grunted through plastic pig snouts and wallowed in fake $100 bills bearing images of Bush and Cheney.

They accused Cheney and Halliburton, the company he once led, of profiting from the Iraq war and its aftermath. They chanted: "We love money. We love war. We love Cheney even more."

There were no immediate reports of violence, but police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said officers showed "great restraint in the face of relentless provocation" by the protesters.

Police official Michael Collins said there were more than 970 arrests at demonstrations around New York. More than 1,300 people have been taken into custody in convention-related protests since late last week.

Heightened security has filled Manhattan with barriers, armed police and street-corner activists.

The demonstrations overshadowed the convention itself and keynote speeches from First Lady Laura Bush and daughters Jenna and Barbara.

On the second night of the fourday event, former Hollywood star Arnold Schwarzenegger, now governor of California, gave a rousing account of his life as proof of the "American dream".

Bush supporters believe the speeches, and displays of support by former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and Senator John McCain, have tipped the balance-against Democrat candidate John Kerry.

In her speech, Mrs Bush claimed her husband had led the United States with "strength and conviction" after the September 11 attacks and deserved re-election so he could finish the job of making America safer.

She said he was leading "the most historic struggle my generation has ever known. The stakes are so high."

However, there were claims today that Downing Street was privately hoping for a Democrat victory. At a private dinner in America, Leader of the Commons Peter Hain is said to given Kerry supporters the impression that No 10 privately backed their campaign.