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Protesters Assault Trump Supporters With Eggs, Bottles, Punches After Rally

One woman was cornered, spat on, and verbally assaulted while Trump opponents threw eggs, food and water bottles at her.
Image: Donald Trump protest
A woman wiped egg off her face after being pursued by protesters while leaving Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's campaign rally on Thursday.Noah Berger / AP

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Donald Trump supporters were mobbed and assaulted by protesters on Thursday night after the candidate's campaign rally in California.

The violence broke out after the event in San Jose wrapped up just before 8 p.m. local time (11 p.m. ET). Some Trump supporters were punched. One woman wearing a "Trump" jersey was cornered, spat on, and pelted with eggs and water bottles.

Police held back at first but eventually moved in. San Jose Police Sgt. Enrique Garcia told NBC News that several protesters were arrested and one officer was assaulted in the melee.

The videos below contains language some may find offensive.

Lan Hoang said anti-Trump protesters stole his "Make America Great Again" hat off of his head and set it on fire as he was leaving the rally.

The 24-year-old said he saw "a lot" of Trump supporters get attacked on the walk back to his car after the rally.

Protesters also smashed cars in a nearby parking structure and surrounded and taunted an elderly couple, according to Steve Tong.

"It was unbelievable," he told NBC Bay Area. "I've never seen anything like that in America before,"

Adam Rivas, a 22-year-old community college student who was born and raised in San Jose, was among those who turned out ahead of the rally to protest Trump.

Holding a "Dump Trump" sign, he told NBC Bay Area that Trump's remarks about Mexicans were offensive.

Hillary Clinton's campaign chair John Podesta condemned the violence, saying that "violence against supporters of any candidate has no place in this election."

"For any one Mexican here he bashes, there are about 20 Mexicans out there who are hard-working and just doing their job,'' Rivas said.

It wasn't the first Trump rally in California to turn violent. About 20 people were arrested after an April speech by Trump in Costa Mesa south of Los Angeles, when members of the crowd damaged five police vehicles.

Inside the San Jose Convention Center, Donald Trump was in full attack mode Thursday night, repeating his claim that Hillary Clinton's use of a personal email server was illegal.

Trump’s assault on Clinton came just hours after the Democratic candidate gave a national security speech painting the GOP nominee as reckless and dangerous. Trump called Clinton's speech a "phony hit job" and retaliated by criticizing the former Secretary of State for her email scandal, foreign policy legacy, and her gun control policy proposals.

He also revived an attack line he famously used against former Republican rival Jeb Bush — energy level. "I watched Hillary’s thing today, it’s like Sominex ... you ever hear of Sominex? Sleep all night. It’s hard to stay awake!" Trump said. "I’m not a big sleeper. I think [Clinton] could make more money if she made speeches and sold them to people who can’t sleep."

At one point, the presumptive Republican nominee appeared sensitive to Clinton's attacks on his lack of foreign policy experience.

"Don’t let the no experience fool you," Trump said. "I’ve been on the other side of the equation ... I was very much a part of the establishment. I was a big donor."