POLICE use CS spray as trouble flared during a series of dramatic dawn raids in Glasgow.

Eight teenagers - aged between 14 and 18 - were arrested as cops closed in on suspected thugs following a mass brawl in a busy city street.

The Evening Times joined officers in Possil as youngsters were arrested. Similar raids were also launched in Saracen and Maryhill, at 8am yesterday.

Senior officers took action after two men were seriously injured during an alleged stabbing and bottle attack last month.

At one property in Saracen, the mum and dad of a 15-year-old suspect were arrested after they allegedly assaulted police officers.

Officers swooped on seven properties and dragged suspected teenage thugs from their beds in front of shocked parents.

Detective Inspector Jim Bradley, who led the early morning operation, said: "This sends out a clear message that fighting and violence on our streets will not be tolerated.

"We targeted several addresses on the same day, at the same time, because we think it sends out a message.

"Anyone engaging in violent crime will be caught and we will take action."

We joined officers, supported by Police Scotland's Violence Reduction Unit and specialists from the Gangs Taskforce, as they carried out a raid on the home of a key suspect.

Six officers, most dressed in plain clothes, surrounded the flat in Possil, just after 8am.

As police entered, occupants could be heard shouting: "Have you got a warrant?"

The suspect was immediately apprehended and investigations then moved inside the property, where officers searched for any potential evidence.

The 17-year-old was later led to waiting police car.

A number of items were recovered during searches, as another six homes were turned over.

DI Bradley, said: "As well as sending out a message to potential violent offenders, it's also a time to reassure the public they no longer have to put up with this kind of behaviour.

"Any information that is passed to us, from members of the public, will be acted on.

"Patrols will also be stepped up and there will be a visible police presence in the local area.

"We will continue to work to ensure we can impose curfews and exclusion zones to help stop violent incidents from taking place.

"Police Scotland simply won't tolerate acts of violence on our city's streets."

The raids were sparked after a 32-year-old man was allegedly stabbed and a 52-year-old man injured in an incident on Friday September 26.

CCTV footage of the alleged incident, in which the older man suffered cuts to his head which required stitches, was reviewed by officers.

Police told the Evening Times how traffic - including a double-decker bus - was forced to swerve as the fight spilled on to the road.

They identified suspects from the footage - and knocked on their doors yesterday.

A 41-year-old man will appear at Glasgow Sheriff Court today.

Eight youths were released on an undertaking to appear in court at a later date.

A 41-year-old woman was released on an undertaking to appear in court at a later date.

rebecca.gray@ eveningtimes.co.uk