In the Australian metropolis of Melbourne, several police officers were injured in violent protests against the ongoing corona lockdown.
More than 200 demonstrators were arrested, the police said on Saturday.
The demonstrators broke through barriers in the city center and engaged in violent clashes with the officials.
Despite a ban on gathering, around 700 people took part in the protest on Saturday, according to police.
Officials were pelted with projectiles, others in the crowd were downright “trampled”.
Six police officers had to be hospitalized.
The police used, among other things, pepper spray against the demonstrators.
"What we saw today was a group of demonstrators who did not stand up for the defense of freedoms, but wanted to confront the police," said Victoria State Police Chief Mark Galliott.
In Sydney, in the neighboring state of New South Wales, a huge police force managed to prevent similar gatherings.
According to police, there were around 20 arrests.
In the two largest Australian cities, Sydney and Melbourne, there are currently long lockdowns due to the corona pandemic. Australia was initially able to contain the corona virus to a large extent by closing its borders, quickly imposing lockdowns and intensive contact tracing. However, the delta variant has led to major outbreaks in recent months. In addition, the vaccination campaign in Australia got off to a slow start. The seven-day incidence on Saturday was 48.3, according to Johns Hopkins University in Australia. Around 36 percent of the population are fully vaccinated.