US President-elect Trump 'saddened' by rising cases of harassment of minorities

WASHINGTON - US presidential election winner Donald Trump on Sunday told his supporters to stop harassing minorities in his first televised interview as president-elect.

Trump said he was "saddened" by reports that incidents of harassment and intimidation of minorities had spiked since his election.

"I hate to hear that. I am so saddened to hear that," Trump said when asked about the reports at the interview with the CBS's "60 Minutes," which was taped Friday and aired in full Sunday.

Police across the country are investigating a wave of alleged hate crimes against Muslims, Hispanic Americans, black people, ethnic minorities and the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) community in the wake of the US election.

Attackers professing support for Trump have been accused of numerous attacks following his shock victory, including death threats, physical assaults and racist graffiti.

Among the incident is the alleged robbery of a Muslim student at San Diego State University by two men who "made comments about President-elect Donald Trump and the Muslim community" before stealing her purse, rucksack and car.

There were also many reports of attacks on women wearing hijabs and Islamic dress.

Trump's election victory has sparked days of protests in several major cities nationwide, and analysts believe that the demonstrations may continue for some time.

The "we reject the president-elect" chant echoed far and wide again in New York City Saturday, as thousands of angry New Yorkers protested against Trump's win.

The protesters, mostly young people, gathered at Union Square in force and soon marched towards the Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue, residence and campaign headquarters of the real estate mogul and reality show star turned politician.

The police force of the city was on high alert, barricading the entrance of Trump Tower and many storefronts.

Protesters have also taken to the streets of Chicago, Miami, Denver, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Louisville, Kentucky, Baltimore and other cities.

While most protests have been peaceful, there have been reports of violence and at least one shooting.

A man was shot and injured during a protest march in the early morning hours of Saturday in the city of Portland, the US state of Oregon, police said on Saturday.

The police said in a news release that the victim was participating in the protest march when he was shot, and that he was continuing to recover from his non-life-threatening injuries.

Analysts said the reason behind the widespread protests across the country is that Trump has elicited much controversy over the past year in one of the most controversial and nastiest presidential races.

The question remains whether the protests will continue, fade out, or even turn violent in the days and weeks to come.

"The protests against Trump will continue. Progressive forces are strongly opposed to Trump's agenda and will ferociously resist what he is doing. There is a risk that protests turn violent and exacerbate societal tensions," Brookings Institution Senior Fellow Darrell West told Xinhua.