Farmers protest outside the European Parliament as European leaders meet for an EU summit in Brussels, February 1, 2024. /CFP
Farmers threw eggs and stones at the European Parliament on Thursday, starting fires near the building and setting off fireworks amid protests to press a summit of European Union leaders to do more to help them with taxes and rising costs.
Protesters tried to tear down the barriers erected in front of parliament – a few blocks from where the summit was taking place – but police pushed them back with water hoses. Police also fired tear gas.
A local official said a statue on the square where farmers were gathered near the parliament with their tractors was damaged.
Parked tractors block passage as farmers protest outside the European Parliament ahead of an EU summit in Brussels, Belgium, February 1, 2024. /CFP
Major thoroughfares in Brussels, the heart of the European Union, were blocked by around 1,300 tractors, according to a police estimate.
Security personnel in riot gear stood guard behind barriers where the leaders were meeting at European Council headquarters.
Farmers say they are not being paid enough, are choked by taxes and green rules and face unfair competition from abroad.
Belgium currently holds the rotating presidency of the EU, and Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said he would address the issue during the summit as a late addition to an agenda centered on providing more aid to Ukraine.
(With input from agencies)
(Cover: A man throws an egg at anti-riot police officers during a protest by farmers outside the European Parliament as European leaders meet for an EU summit in Brussels, February 1, 2024. /CFP)