Thousands of demonstrators gathered in Geneva on Sunday for a major anti-Group of Seven march ahead of this week's summit in nearby Evian-les-Bains, France, as authorities mounted a massive security operation across the city.
Participants began assembling at Parc Mon Repos from around 2 pm local time (1200GMT) before setting off an hour later toward Place des Nations under the banner of the No G7 coalition, which opposes the political, economic and foreign policies of the G7 nations.
Geneva authorities had prepared for a turnout of up to 50,000 people.
The demonstration took place amid one of the largest security deployments seen in the region in years. According to Geneva police, more than 7,400 personnel have been mobilized for the summit period, including cantonal police, reinforcements from other Swiss cantons and around 4,000 members of the Swiss Army.
French security personnel also arrived in Geneva on Saturday to support cross-border coordination efforts.
The demonstration proceeded peacefully as of late afternoon under heavy security measures, with no immediate clashes or police intervention.
The protesters carried banners that read "Your enemies don't arrive by boat, they arrive by private jet. NO G7," "No to fascism," "No to imperialism," "Refugees welcome, imperialist go home," "NO G7," and "Against G7 for more justice, equality, solidarity and peace."
They also chanted slogans, calling the G7 "imperialist alliance."
The protesters also carried Palestinian flags and chanted slogans such as "from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free," and "Free Palestine."
Several minor incidents, however, were reported during the demonstration. Near Geneva's main Cornavin train station, a vehicle caught fire at a bus stop for reasons that were not immediately clear, prompting an intervention by firefighters.
Near Lyon tramway station, one storefront sustained damage after protective panels were torn down and windows were broken.
Another store suffered a similar attack at Rue des Alpes. Windowed panels of some bus stations were also damaged. Small groups of masked individuals were also seen spray-painting anti-G7 and anti-Israeli military slogans on walls and other surfaces along the route.
Authorities maintained a visible security presence along the route while monitoring the march.
As the protesters reached near the UN Geneva Office, a group of masked youths broke the pavement stones. They later crashed into the entrance of a nearby building, prompting police to intervene with pepper spray.
The International Telecommunication Union's entrance also suffered a similar attack.
As the demonstration approached its conclusion near Parc Mon Repos, where participants had gathered at the start of the march, police deployed heavy pepper spray, as well as water cannon at the scene after a group of protesters attempted to leave the authorized route.
Geneva has taken extensive security measures due to the summit, including the closure of 25 border crossings with France, as well as increased checks and traffic restrictions on key routes.
Across parts of central Geneva and the Old Town, many businesses have installed wooden panels over storefronts as a precaution ahead of the meeting and demonstrations.
The visible preparations have revived memories of the 2003 G8 summit in Evian, when violence and looting by some protesters caused significant damage in Geneva.
