At least 93 police officers were injured and 354 protesters were detained after traditional May Day rallies in Berlin turned violent, the German Police Union has said.
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More than 20 rallies took place in the German capital on Saturday and the vast majority were peaceful.
However, a leftist march of 8,000 people through the city's Neukoelln and Kreuzberg district, which has often seen clashes in past decades, turned violent.
Protesters threw bottles and rocks at officers, and burned rubbish bins and wooden pallets in the streets.
"Violence against police officers and a blind, destructive rage has nothing to do with political protest," Berlin state interior minister Andreas Geisel said.
He condemned the throwing of bottles and rocks and the burning of barricades on the streets and especially the violence towards police, saying: "The high number of injured officers leaves me stunned. I wish all of those who were injured in the line of duty a quick recovery."
There is a nightly curfew in most parts of Germany because of the high number of coronavirus infections, but political protests and religious gatherings are exempt.
Australian Associated Press