Two churches were torched as tens of thousands of demonstrators gathered in a central Santiago square to mark the anniversary of a protest movement demanding greater equality in Chile that broke out last year.

While the protests at Plaza Italia had a largely festive atmosphere in the morning, there were several incidents of violence, looting and vandalism in the afternoon. One church close to Plaza Italia was burnt to the ground as hooded protesters cheered, while a second place of worship was looted and also suffered fire damage.

Firefighters managed to get that blaze under control. The small Church of the Assumption that was totally destroyed was known as the "artists' parish". The communist mayor of a neighborhood near the central square, Daniel Jadue, was hounded out of Plaza Italia by protesters.