G20 protests: At least 76 people hurt in clashes with Hamburg police amid chaotic scenes

At least 76 people have been hurt in clashes with police in the German city of Hamburg as the force used water cannons on black-clad protesters who were pelting them with water bottles, foreign media reported. 

The "Welcome to Hell" rally is one of a number of protests against both the G20 summit taking place in the city and Donald Trump's arrival.

Police said beforehand they were expecting some 100,000 potentially violent activists from across Europe and beyond. As a result they had deployed more than 20,000 officers in the city. 

The force they had repeatedly asked a group of anti-capitalist demonstrators to remove their masks and when they were ignored, they separated the group from the rest of the demonstration. Black-hooded protesters attacked a police vehicle with bottles and bricks, breaking its window.

The violence broke out near the start of the demonstration at a riverside plaza used for Hamburg's weekly fish market.

The riots come amid mounting tensions about the conduct of local police some Hamburg residents have accused them of heavy-handed tactics. On Tuesday, five people were injured when police used hi-tech water cannons to disperse crowds near the conference venue on Tuesday evening. 

Hamburg police chief Ralf Martin Meyer said they were expecting "not just sit-in protests but massive assaults" as anarchists from neighbouring countries are expected to make the journey to the city which has long been associated with protests and May Day rioting, foreign media say.