Opponents of COVID rules clash with Brussels police

A few thousand protesters marched peacefully through the center of the Belgian capital to the neighborhood which hosts the headquarters of European Union institutions.

In the EU quarter, a group of protesters wearing black hoods and chanting "liberte" (freedom) started to throw stones at the police.

According to reports from a Reuters journalist, police reacted with tear gas and water cannons.

Demonstrators were protesting rules imposed in October that oblige people to show COVID-19 passes to access bars and restaurants.

The protest followed new measures announced on Friday (December 3) to curb one of Europe's highest infection rates, including mandatory mask wearing for most primary school children and a lengthening of the school holidays.