No major incidents reported from anti-NATO protest

Riot police on Thursday rebuffed about 1,500 anti-war demonstrators who temporarily blocked access to the Congress Centre where dozens of presidents, ministers and military leaders were attending the NATO summit. No violence was reported, but at least three demonstrators were detained during the four-hour march through the streets of Prague. The demonstrators marched from nearby streets and squares towards Nuselsky Bridge leading to the Congress Centre. They stood chanting and waving banners for more than an hour across the span from the Congress Centre summit site.

The police, equipped with water cannons and riot gear, stood in front of the bridge until the protesters gave up and marched away. The demonstration was the largest since a coalition of groups called AntiNATO started protests on Tuesday, but far below organisers' expectations. They hoped 10,000 people would rally in Prague, but many would-be protesters from other European countries were turned away at the Czech border.