Thousands of people gathered in Warsaw and in 80 other towns in Poland today to protest against the reception of migrants, DPA reported. The rallies were organized by the far-right coalition "Confederation", BTA reported.
The demonstrators chanted "Stop immigration!" and "Stop the immigration invasion" and held banners that read: "This is Poland" and "Poland for Poles".
During the protests, anti-Muslim and anti-Semitic symbols were seen among the crowd.
In several of the larger cities there were also counter-demonstrators.
The protests were relatively peaceful. But in Warsaw, police had to intervene when far-right hooligans associated with the Legia Warsaw football team attacked a group of counter-demonstrators.
„Confederation“ is known for its rhetoric against foreigners, LGBT people and the EU. The political force has members in both the Polish parliament and the European Parliament. In Poland's presidential election earlier this year, the „Confederation“ candidate came in third place, and a new poll for the news portal „Onet“ showed that over 30 percent of respondents would support the „Confederation“'s participation in a future governing coalition.