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Hundreds of protesters, including some wearing a Far-right imperial flag, tried to enter the historic building on Saturday afternoon, amid mounting anger over COVID-19 measures across the country. German police fought the crowd after the security barricades were overwhelmed by a group of protesters, who then attempted to run up the Reichstag stairs.
However, the police managed to keep violent protesters out of the famous building, but the day was marred by arrests and many officers were injured.
Authorities say more than 38,000 people took to the streets of the capital, double what authorities expected.
German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier called the scenes “unacceptable”.
Steinmeier also condemned the waving of the imperial flag, which was used by the German Empire from 1871 to 1918.
He said: “The Reich flags and far-right blasphemies in front of the German parliament are an unacceptable attack on the heart of our democracy.
“We will never accept this.”
Finance Minister Olaf Scholz said the protest outside parliament had tainted democracy with “symbols of a dark and evil past.”
Scholz said: “It is unacceptable that some now appear in front of the Bundestag building, the Reichstag building, the most important symbol of our democracy, the parliament, with symbols of a dark bad past, flags that have nothing to do with our democracy. modern “.
The Reichstag building was burned down in 1933 and many historians believe this helped pave the way for the Nazi government of Adolf Hitler to take over without any scrutiny.
In 1990, an extensive restoration and renovation was carried out on the building after the reunification of West and East Germany.
On October 4, 1990, the Bundestag of the newly reunified German state met for the first time in the Reichstag after the parliament moved from Bonn to Berlin.
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He added: “It is unacceptable to see extremists and rioters use it for their own ends.”
Protests against the coronavirus were not just confined to Berlin this weekend, in London hundreds of protesters traveled to Trafalgar Square for a ‘Unite for Freedom’ rally.
In Paris, around 300 people took part in a similar demonstration against the new rules on masks and other restrictions.
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