Violence marrs Strasbourg Nato summit

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Violence has flared in the French city of Strasbourg where leaders are gathering to mark the 60th anniversary of Nato.

Protesters have clashed with riot police in running battles ahead of the summit.

Officers fired teargas and rubber bullets into the crowd as the violence intensified and 300 people were arrested.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown and US President Barack Obama are travelling to the event fresh from their success at the G20 summit in London.

Mr Obama will be looking for European support for his new strategy on the conflict in Afghanistan.

Strasbourg has been virtually shut down as troops and police mount one of their biggest security operations to protect thousands of delegates from 26 countries.

Schools and universities are closed and residents have been given badges to allow them limited access during the two-day gathering which also marks the return of France to Nato's military command.

All civilian road traffic is being diverted away from the city, and security fears have also meant the unprecedented suspension of EU rules on the free movement of citizens.

The so-called "Schengen" accord has been put on hold to allow the temporary reinstatement of border controls operated by German troops and police at the bridge across the Rhine linking Strasbourg and the German town of Kehl, where some of the official Nato ceremonies will take place.

Boats and commercial barges navigating the stretch of the Rhine between Strasbourg and Kehl will be stopped, and residents in Kehl have been warned they may have to stay inside their homes at key moments during April 3 and 4.

Meanwhile peace activists have set up their own tented "anti-Nato village" outside Strasbourg but will not be allowed to stage any rallies in the city as security chiefs crack down on an expected minimum total of 20,000 demonstrators - and possibly double that figure.

The police and military presence for the event has been put at 45,000 in an operation said to be costing about £100 million - at least a dozen times the estimated cost of security during the G20 summit in London.

Strasbourg is used to playing host to the European Parliament every month and the occasional summit. It is also the seat of Europe's human rights watchdog, the Council of Europe.

[link to uk.news.yahoo.com]