George Clooney was released from police custody Friday afternoon after paying a $100 fine. Earlier in the day, Clooney, his father and current and former members of congress were arrested outside the Sudanese embassy in Washington D.C.

Authorities cautioned the group three times not to cross a police line, but Clooney and the group did not heed the warnings. Also arrested were Rep. James McGovern (D-Mass.), Rep. John Olver (D-Mass.), Rep. Al Green (D-Tx.) and Rep. Jim Moran (D-Va.), former Rep. Tom Andrews (D-Maine), NAACP president Ben Jealous, Martin Luther King III and actor Dick Gregory.

Though they caused hysteria on Twitter and other social networks, the arrests were not widely anticipated. Before his arrest, Clooney told The Huffington Post that he hoped shedding light on the abuses of the Sudanese government would pressure the country's president into allowing humanitarian aid into beleaguered regions of the nation.

"The goal for today is the same goal its been all along and will continue to be and not be accomplished today or anytime in the near future," Clooney said. "But it's a job that we have to continually do which is raise attention; protest the idea of a government attacking and killing its own innocent men, women and children and allowing aid to get in now because in the next few months it could be the greatest humanitarian crisis in the world and thats the important thing."

Though Ann Curry quoted Clooney as saying being arrested was "a humiliating thing," he was able to keep a light view of his time in jail.

"It was really rough, you can imagine," the actor and activist joked to reporters after being released. "Have you ever been in a cell with these guys?"

For more on the developments, including HuffPost's live blog of the morning's events, read our original story.

PHOTOS: George Clooney Arrested In D.C.

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