Nato 60th Summit in Strasbourg Marred by Street Battles and Arson
THE TELEGRAPH: Buildings were set on fire and running battles were fought between protesters and riot police in the streets of Strasbourg, where Barack Obama and world leaders have gathered for a Nato summit.

A violent anti-NATO protest takes place during NATO's 60th-anniversary summit. Anti-NATO activists set up a barricade with a Strasbourg road sign, near the German border at the Europe bridge, east of Strasbourg. Photo courtesy of The Telegraph
Anarchists and demonstrators set fires at a hotel, a disused border post and a tourism office around Strasbourg's Pont de l'Europe, a bridge that joins France and Germany.

Police fired volleys of teargas to try to stop groups of violent French and German protesters joining forces to rampage across the city.

Masked youths threw petrol bombs, smashed windows and ransacked shops, forcing police to retreat until riot officers could regroup to seize back control.

Eyewitnesses saw black-clad protesters storm the nearby Ibis hotel, pilfering alcohol from its bar and setting the building ablaze.

"The hotel and the other buildings were completely engulfed in flames," said a resident of the city who witnessed the mayhem. >>> By Bruno Waterfield and Peter Allen in Strasbourg | Saturday, April 4, 2009