BRUSSELS: Police in Brussels intervened on Sunday to stop violence that broke out after a demonstration against a UN migration pact.
Security forces used tear gas and water cannon after some demonstrators threw stones and other objects at the European Commission building in the city, news agency Belga reported.
About 5,500 people took part in the “March against Marrakesh,” police said. The UN’s Global Compact on Migration was endorsed by more than 150 countries in the Moroccan city on Monday.
The demonstrators were reportedly calling for priority for “our own people,” for closed borders and for the resignation of Prime Minister Charles Michel.
Right-wing and extreme right-wing Flemish groups organised the rally.
Left-wing groups organised a counter-demonstration that drew about 1,000 people to the streets, but they kept their distance from the rival marchers.
A separate counter-demonstration of around 1,000 people, organised by left-wing groups and non-governmental organisations, took place in the city centre.
Belgian right-wing N-VA, which is the biggest party in parliament, pulled its ministers from the ruling coalition last week after Prime Minister Charles Michel refused its demand that he not sign the UN migration compact in Marrakesh. Michel had secured a large parliamentary majority in favour of maintaining Belgium’s support of the UN text, with support from the opposition socialists and greens. — Reuters
Oman Observer is now on the WhatsApp channel. Click here
