Violence in Holland and Belgium! Mass demonstrations in Austria! Are the corona protests growing into conflagration?
► In Rotterdam Thousands of street battles fought with the police, set cars on fire, and threw incendiary bombs. Rotterdam’s mayor spoke of an “orgy of violence”.
Police officers shot demonstrators with live ammunition. Record: 7 injured, 51 arrests, including mostly hooligans.
Cause of the fighting: stricter corona rules (including 2G for bars, restaurants). On Saturday, the wave of rioting spread to other cities: In The Hague, young people threw fireworks, started fires, and attacked ambulances. The Limburg district reported similar incidents. There have been 19 arrests. In total, the police took at least 40 people into custody in several locations.
There were further riots on Sunday evening in the cities of Leeuwarden, Groningen, Enschede and Tilburg. In Enschede, where an emergency ordinance was issued, the police tried to disperse a crowd with batons, according to a video circulated in the Internet media. In Groningen and Leeuwarden, protesters threw fireworks and set off flares.
A football game in Leeuwarden had to be interrupted after fans who were not allowed into the stadium due to the corona conditions threw fireworks.
► On Sunday there were also riots in Brussels, where rules similar to those in Germany apply (including 2G in restaurants). 35,000 violent people marched through the city center, throwing incendiary devices and setting fire to cars. Police officers shot tear gas grenades into the crowd.
40,000 people took to the streets in Vienna, including right-wing extremist groupsPhoto: Vadim Ghirda / AP
► In Vienna 40,000 people demonstrated against the lockdown that will apply from today (including those who have been vaccinated). However, the protests were mostly peaceful.
German security authorities are following the unrest with concern and want to prevent the violence from spreading to Germany.
A spokesman for the Interior Ministry on BILD: “We are monitoring the situation in our neighboring countries very carefully.”
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