Estonia, Talinn: Riots - 1 dead, hundreds hurt, 300 arrested. Buildings burn

international | miscellaneous | news report

Sunday April 29, 2007 16:37

by y

Tallinn looks like a city in war: shops, buildings are burning. Everywhere people are beaten by police.
Yesterday night thousands of people rioted because the governemnt brought to fall "the sovjet soldier" - a monument in the middle of the city that honoured the anti-fascist soldiers of the sovjet army who freed Talinn from the nazis in WW II.

Estonia became independent after 1990, and was a part of the former Sovjet Union. Estonia meantime is governed by a anti-russian far-right government that seems to regard the nazis as Estonias protecters and the sovjets, who fought them, as occupiers.

An angry protest against the destruction of the monument of the sovjet soldier turned into the heaviest riot Estonia has ever seen when police shot tear gas in the masses. Police was attacked with bottles and stones, the whole city centre is devasted, shops are plundered, buildings in flames.

Many people are severly hurt. At least one protester was seen being beaten to death by police.

People begin to organize all over Estonia. The protests are expected to go on at least until May 9th, a symbolic date in Estonian history.

Russian officials named Estonias government "rural country nazis". Russia freezed all its economic relations to Estonia. Even trains planes and ships are stopped.

VIDEOS:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-o_1pN7i5ZA&mode=related...arch=
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGOXlz2lnLw&NR=1