Policeman killed in Georgia protest

Georgian authorities said early Thursday they have cleared the area in front of the parliament building which had been occupied by supporters of the opposition, but a policeman was killed in the process.

A unspecific number of protesters were detained, the Interior Ministry said in a statement, while there were no reports on casualties among the protesters.

"At 0:10 a.m., police cleared the territories adjacent to the parliament building from the protesters. A number of participants of the unsanctioned rally were detained for resisting the police," the ministry said.

The policeman was run over by speeding motor vehicles pulling out from the front of the building, it added.

Led by the opposition People's Assembly, the protesters took to the streets of the capital on May 21-25.

As the protesters marched Wednesday from the state-owned GPB TV station toward the direction of the Freedom Square, they stopped in front of the parliament building on the Rustaveli Avenue. The protesters then occupied the reviewing platforms and set up makeshift fences to block traffic along the avenue, where a parade was scheduled for Thursday to mark the country's 20th independence anniversary.

Later on Wednesday, anti-riot police were sent in to disperse the protesters, using water cannons, tear gases and rubber bullets. Shortly after midnight Wednesday, authorities announced they took back control of the area front of the parliament building.

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