World Peace protesters form human chain outside German parliament

BERLIN (AP) — Hundreds of peace protesters formed a human chain outside Germany's parliament Saturday, urging disarmament and an end to weapons exports.

© Provided by Associated Press Activists are pushed back by the police at the forest in Dannenrod, Germany, Saturday, Dec. 5, 2020. At the Dannenroeder Forst, opponents of the highway expansion have again erected barricades and burned pyrotechnics on Saturday. According to the police, they blocked, among other things, the emergency and rescue routes of an adjacent logistics warehouse. The officers used water cannons and removed the obstacles. (Nadine Weigel/dpa via AP)

About 300 people formed the chain stretching from the parliament building to German Chancellor Angela Merkel's nearby office, the dpa news agency reported.

Thailand's protest movement has entered a dangerous new phase

Five pro-democracy leaders reported to Thai police Monday to face accusations of lese majeste -- a controversial and sweeping law that prohibits criticism of Thailand's royal family -- as authorities attempt to crack down on the country's growing protest movement.It's the first time in more than two years that the law has been used, signaling that authorities are becoming increasingly frustrated with the demonstrations against the country's military-backed government, which are calling for reforms to the military-drafted constitution and powerful monarchy.

Protesters in Hong Kong formed a human chain across the city on Friday, marking the 30-year anniversary of this tactic being used by Estonians, Latvians, and Following the incident, the Canadian consulate in Hong Kong barred local staff from traveling outside the city and to mainland China.

Thousands of protesters took to the streets in Tokyo on Sunday, forming a human chain outside the parliament building to oppose the planned relocation of a US airbase on the island of Okinawa. The rally was the latest in a series of protests that have been happening across the country.

© Provided by Associated Press An activist throws a snowball at the police at the forest in Dannenrod, Germany, Saturday, Dec. 5, 2020. At the Dannenroeder Forst, opponents of the highway expansion have again erected barricades and burned pyrotechnics on Saturday. According to the police, they blocked, among other things, the emergency and rescue routes of an adjacent logistics warehouse. The officers used water cannons and removed the obstacles. (Nadine Weigel/dpa via AP)

The demonstration, organized under the motto “Peace, not armaments,” came as the German government prepares to approve its budget proposals for the next two years, which include hefty defense spending.

© Provided by Associated Press An activist stretches a wooden sword towards the police at the forest in Dannenrod, Germany, Saturday, Dec. 5, 2020. At the Dannenroeder Forst, opponents of the highway expansion have again erected barricades and burned pyrotechnics on Saturday. According to the police, they blocked, among other things, the emergency and rescue routes of an adjacent logistics warehouse. The officers used water cannons and removed the obstacles. (Nadine Weigel/dpa via AP)

Protesters carried signs with slogans such as “No killer drones” and “Achieve peace without weapons.”

'We need support' - Portuguese restaurant owners stage lockdown hunger strike

'We need support' - Portuguese restaurant owners stage lockdown hunger strike"We need support ... to keep our heads above water," said Alberto Cabral, who runs a nightclub.

As protesters formed human chains across Hong Kong on Friday, Ramunas Terleckas was out on the streets of Lithuania's capital Vilnius getting ready to commemorate the event which inspired them.

Torontonians pledging allegiance with pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong formed a human chain outside Union Station. It’s part of a larger call echoing

German Trade Union Confederation President Reiner Hoffmann told the protest crowd it was time for the country to back away from the NATO commitment to spend 2% of GDP on defense.

“We need to break the armament spiral,” he told the crowd. “Armaments and armed conflicts don't solve any problems.”

Germany has been criticized by the United States for not meeting the 2% NATO goal, but Berlin has pledged to work toward it and has been increasing defense spending.

© Provided by Associated Press The police use a water cannon against activists at the forest in Dannenrod, Germany, Saturday, Dec. 5, 2020. At the Dannenroeder Forst, opponents of the highway expansion have again erected barricades and burned pyrotechnics on Saturday. According to the police, they blocked, among other things, the emergency and rescue routes of an adjacent logistics warehouse. The officers used water cannons and removed the obstacles. (Nadine Weigel/dpa via AP)

At an unrelated demonstration elsewhere in Germany, police turned water cannons on protesters in a snowy forest between the western cities of Frankfurt and Kassel.

Fact check: Biden won popular, Electoral College votes in several battleground states

A false claim uses unsupported evidence to back flipping votes from Joe Biden to Donald Trump in seven states."I have maintained since election night that Trump is the clear winner, counting the legal votes. But he’s only 23,800 votes away from winning by a squeaker even if you use the crooked vote tallies widely reported by Associated Press," begins a post on the Facebook page for Clean TV.

Opposition supporters formed a human chain around the parliament building in Budapest on Tuesday, as elected representatives attended its first sitting since last month’s national elections. The protests have been ongoing since April, drawing protesters from a range of ideological backgrounds

Rights groups representing Britons living in Europe and EU citizens in Britain formed a human chain outside Downing Street on Monday, demanding the government guarantee their The protesters , who linked arms along Whitehall in the heart of London's political district, then delivered a letter to

Environmental activists have been demonstrating regularly against the planned expansion of the A49 highway.

© Provided by Associated Press Activists are pushed back by the police at the forest in Dannenrod, Germany, Saturday, Dec. 5, 2020. At the Dannenroeder Forst, opponents of the highway expansion have again erected barricades and burned pyrotechnics on Saturday. According to the police, they blocked, among other things, the emergency and rescue routes of an adjacent logistics warehouse. The officers used water cannons and removed the obstacles. (Nadine Weigel/dpa via AP)