BELEM: Dozens of Indigenous protesters clashed with security guards Tuesday at the COP30 climate summit in Belem, Brazil, in a rare outbreak of violence at the annual UN climate conference, AFP journalists witnessed.
The demonstrators chanted slogans and danced outside the convention center in the evening before pushing their way inside, where security personnel moved to force them back.
Calm was quickly restored, and guards barricaded the entrances with tables and chairs.
An AFP journalist saw a police officer being evacuated in a wheelchair.
Security inside the COP30 venue is overseen by the United Nations, while local authorities are responsible for the surrounding area.
Maria Clara, a protester with the Rede Sustentabilidade Bahia association, told AFP she wanted to draw attention to the plight of Indigenous peoples.
“These voices are ignored,” she said.