Anti-lockdown demonstrations intensified across Europe on Saturday night, with violent clashes in Rome, Barcelona, and Madrid. In Rome, protesters hurled Molotov cocktails, bottles, and rocks at police during a sit-in at Campo dei Fiori. Riot police in full gear charged the crowd, with one officer falling to the ground as others swung truncheons.
In Barcelona, Spain's second-largest city, a second night of disturbances saw protesters pelting police with rocks and setting fire to wooden pallets. Small fires also broke out in Madrid, where demonstrators set up barricades on Granvia Avenue. In the northern city of Logroño, 150 people attacked police with stones, set fire to containers, and looted shops, according to officers.
In Germany, the city of Dresden saw protests organised by the anti-lockdown group Querdenken 571, though these were less violent than elsewhere. The demonstrations occurred as European governments imposed new national lockdown measures to combat rising coronavirus cases. Italy reported a new daily record of 31,758 cases and 297 deaths on Saturday.
Protests also took place in Naples and Turin, criticising new restrictions. The unrest followed a violent unauthorised demonstration in Florence on Friday, where police sought to prevent about 200 people from entering Piazza della Signoria, leading to clashes with Molotov cocktails and rocks.
