Kanye West arrested in UK after paparazzi incident

Rapper Kanye West has criticised paparazzi photographers after he was briefly arrested following an incident at a Newcastle nightclub.

West was detained early on Friday morning following a complaint from freelance photographer Terry Blackburn.

But West, who featured on Estelle's number one single American Boy earlier this year, was released without charge.

"Right now, the paps are above the law and the people who they shoot are below it," he wrote on his official website.

Mr Blackburn told BBC 1Xtra on Friday the incident happened outside the Tup Tup Palace club in the city centre.

He said: "He had four women around him. As I approached the car which he was getting into, he ran around the back and I ran around the front to try and meet him around the side.

"Just a just as soon as I put my camera up to my face, that was it - he just pushed it in my face."

The incident left him with his nose "cut open", Mr Blackburn claimed.

West said: "When I left the club, I was encountered by a thirsty paparazzi as usual. He felt he had more rights to my space than me, so I put my hand up to prevent him from taking my image.

"I didn't assault him, merely putting my hand up to cover his lens. My security yelled, 'Get the camera off him.'

"I guess in all the commotion the camera scraped his nose."