We expect to have the newspaper online soon. Please check back later this morning. The annual demonstrations escalated last year to a near riot that cost millions of dollars in damage. Nine police officers and 17 civilians were injured, and 95 protesters were arrested. London police have warned residents to stay away from the central city, where protesters are expected to gather.
Police are also on high alert in France and Germany.
May 1 is the traditional date in much of the world for celebrating labor organizations and workers' rights. In Berlin, a far-right party accused of bearing similarities to Hitler's Nazis will be allowed to march after a court rejected city officials' efforts to ban the event. In London, police expect protesters to target the busy Oxford Circus shopping district, which features favorite targets such as McDonald's, Gap and Starbucks. The demonstrators will protest the expansion of globalism, which they claim is impoverishing much of the world while enriching multinational corporations. After being criticized last year for letting things get out of control, Scotland Yard intends to police the event aggressively.