Budapest hit by third night of unrest

Flares and gas canisters were fired between police and hooligans, as several people were injured on the third consecutive night of disturbances in Budapest. Hundreds of police played cat and mouse games with scores of anti-government protesters along Pest's Nagykörút. Earlier, a crowd of up to 15,000 outside Parliament did not trouble police and vowed to maintain a constant presence until the Prime Minister resigns.

The clashes began around 1 a.m., after the peaceful demonstration at Kossuth tér. Agitators, mostly young men, migrated towards Teréz körút between Nyugati station and Oktogon, where police formed lines to keep them at bay.

The encounter was more diffuse than Tuesday night's incidents, when mounted police charged barricades erected by the protesters near Blaha Lujza tér. In last night's clashes, groups of 15-20 riot police responded to chants and taunts from agitators, chasing them away. Bystanders and media personnel mingled in the midst of the action, largely undisturbed.

Police eventually moved decisively to quell the disturbances as they spread to Blaha Lujza tér, and made numerous arrests. The streets were cleared by 3 a.m.

The above story is just one of more than two dozen published today by Hungary Around the Clock, the most comprehensive source of daily English-language news about Hungary. For a free trial of HATC, click here. Hungarian news sources include Népszabadság; Magyar Hírlap; Világgazdaság; Napi Gazdaság; Magyar Nemzet; Népszava; Kossuth Rádió news and Hungarian television's nightly news broadcast.

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