45 arrested in Spain after anti-austerity protest
Spanish police arrest 45, including 9 minors, after large anti-austerity protest; 40 injured
Firefighters extinguish burning trash containers burnt by demonstrators following a protest in Madrid, Spain, Sunday, Feb. 24, 2013. Tens of thousands of people marched on Spain's parliament on Saturday to protest austerity measures, a demonstration that came on the 32nd anniversary of a failed attempt by the armed forces to overthrow the government. (AP Photo/Gabriel Pecot)
MADRID (AP) -- Spanish police say they arrested 45 people, including nine minors, in street violence after a large anti-austerity protest outside parliament. Dozens sustained minor injuries.
Tens of thousands of people marched to parliament to demonstrate against tax hikes, spending cuts, sky-high unemployment and alleged corruption. As the protest ended late Saturday, groups of youths threw bar chairs into a road and burned garbage containers.
Police later found four firebombs in a backpack abandoned on a street. The Interior Ministry says officers then seized 22 firecrackers, five flares and a stick from two minors near Madrid's main railway station.
The ministry also said in a statement Sunday that 40 people, including 12 police officers, received minor injuries in the clashes. Two of the officers received hospital treatment.
