Anti-NATO protesters burn buildings in French city

By Sophie Hardach and Gilbert Reilhac

STRASBOURG, France (Reuters) - Anti-NATO protesters torched buildings, ransacked shops and hurled petrol bombs at police on Saturday in a violent rampage on the fringes of a summit of the military alliance's leaders.

A seven-storey hotel and numerous stores were gutted during the rioting, the ferocity of which seemed to take security forces by surprise in the French city of Strasbourg.

Police withdrew from an area close to the Rhine river at the height of the violence, failing to intervene as hundreds of masked youths tore into the working class district.

"It is disgusting. There wasn't a single policeman protecting this neighborhood. They would have never done this in a beautiful neighborhood," complained local resident, Christine Kiefer, surveying the destruction.

Riot police eventually fought back, firing hundreds of rounds of teargas and stun grenades to try to regain control. Protesters dragged a rail carriage on to the road and shot fireworks into police ranks and into nearby houses.

Guests were evacuated from the IBIS hotel as the flames took control and locals said it took too long for the emergency services to come to their rescue.

German water cannon, held on the other side of the Rhine in case of crowd problems there, were called over to help tackle the blazes that cast a pall of thick black smoke into the sky.

Police said they made several arrests, but gave no further details, and health authorities reported no serious injuries.