Black Lives Matter demonstrations turned violent in the center of Brussels, where protesters set fire to, vandalized a police vehicle and at one point threw stones at the Belgian monarch’s car.
King Philippe had traveled on Wednesday from his offices in Brussels to his castle, Laeken Palace, when his car was surrounded, according to local reports and images of the site.
European Press Agency photos show the king’s car amid the protest; a pair of security guards were walking to protect the vehicle, identifiable by its license plate, which bears the number “1.”
No injuries were reported to the king or damage to his vehicle.
Four people were detained Thursday in protest, three of them charged with arson.
Nearly 500 people were protesting the death on Saturday of police custody of a 23-year-old black man, whose identity has not been officially released.
The suspect had tried to flee from Brussels police applying COVID-19 restrictions in the city center, officials said.
With publishing cables