In Pictures
Romania’s swelling anti-government protests
Security forces fired tear gas and water cannon to disperse large crowds after several violent outbursts.

Bucharest, Romania – Thousands of Romanians protested for the third day in a row on Sunday demanding the resignation of the government and Prime Minister Viorica Dancila.
Violent clashes occurred on Friday night between riot police and protesters in the biggest anti-corruption protests since January 2017.
More than 450 people, including 30 riot police, were hurt and needed medical attention, according to officials. Security forces fired tear gas grenades and water cannon to disperse the crowd, after several violent outbursts with bottles and stones being thrown at police.
Romanian President Klaus Iohannis condemned the police’s use of force in a comment on his Facebook page. “I firmly condemn the riot police’s brutal intervention, strongly disproportionate to the actions of the majority of people in the square,” he said.
Interior Minister Carmen Dan said riot police hadn’t “intervened against peaceful protesters, but against dangerous hooligans who attacked the state’s authority”.
Similar demonstrations were held in major cities such as Cluj, Sibiu, Timisoara, and Iasi as many Romanians returned from abroad angered by entrenched high-level corruption and the weakening of the judiciary.
Most Romanian diaspora are economic migrants. Low local wages have driven about four million Romanians to work abroad, almost one-quarter of the country’s population.

![Around one hundred thousand Romanians gathered on Friday at the peak of the protest, with many bringing their families along. [Alexandra Radu/Global News Insight]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/41844425c1a542918d81927a54beaa7f_8.jpeg?fit=1170%2C780&quality=80)


![Protesters hold anti Government banners during the largest protests in Romania since January 2017. [Alexandra Radu/Global News Insight]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/4b679f0669b041e982077c775570a36e_8.jpeg?fit=1170%2C780&quality=80)
![Protesters angered by the political and economical context yelled against the Government''s actions. [Alexandra Radu/Global News Insight]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/1aaf3eb56bf748ae9a39a8a446217a68_8.jpeg?fit=1170%2C780&quality=80)
![A protester threw a road block at the gendarmes. The protest was mainly peacefull for hours, except for localized incidents, to which the police responded with tear gas. [Alexandra Radu/Global News Insight]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/ed61f4c4e18244c3b5db3e23e96912e6_8.jpeg?fit=1170%2C780&quality=80)
![A woman covered her face with the Romanian flag after the riot police fired tear gas grenades towards the protesters. [Alexandra Radu/Global News Insight]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/e7c727a122ef43fda17d1dcc202d2ba4_8.jpeg?fit=1170%2C780&quality=80)

![Laser anti government messages were projected as tear gas rose from the crowd on Friday evening, during the biggest anti-corruption protest in the last months. [Alexandra Radu/Global News Insight]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/5ade4d4ef45a41f5a0ddf6c3624a7a4f_8.jpeg?fit=1170%2C780&quality=80)
![Protesters sat in the Victory square in Bucharest, their backs facing the Government headquarters. On Saturday tens of thousands returned to protest in a peacefull maner. [Alexandra Radu/Global News Insight]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/d9a2bc35b6324a1aa11eeb239124e508_8.jpeg?fit=1170%2C780&quality=80)
![Messages asking for a non violent protest and for the resignation of the government were projected on buildings in the Victory square. [Alexandra Radu/Global News Insight]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/cd4daf5e13fd4c5b9fe09ac183735ea3_8.jpeg?fit=1170%2C780&quality=80)
![Tens of thousands gathered for the second day of anti-corruption protests in front of the Government headquarters in the Romanian capital. [Alexandra Radu/Global News Insight]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/9b2a609c67f34199823892bf4c45b3c7_8.jpeg?fit=1170%2C780&quality=80)
![Protesters wearing t-shirs writing “We want home” walked towards the Victory square in Bucharest. [Alexandra Radu/Global News Insight]](https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/7b95a940161f41dc8ca68c979ca4501c_8.jpeg?fit=1170%2C780&quality=80)