Thousands of people flooded the streets of European capitals on the weekend to express their opposition to the Covid-19 lockdown measures imposed by the governments.
Citizens protested against the stringent measures in Austria and the Netherlands, as Europe is set to face the latest Covid-19 mutation called Omicron.
As the World Health Organization (WHO) has said no one has died from the new variant, but it is more contagious than the previous Delta variant.
Leaders of EU countries are imposing mandatory mass vaccinations for their citizens, a move that has caused pushback from many people.
In Austria, where a lockdown has been imposed until December 11 for the unvaccinated, those who break the measures will face a fine of 500 euros.
At the same time, anyone who refuses to comply with presenting their Covid-19 certificate faces a fine of 1,450 euros.
Thousands took to the streets in Vienna, as well as in Utrecht, following a general lockdown last week.
In the Netherlands, protesters held up a banner reading “Medical freedom now.” Hundreds of police officers were deployed in the streets.
Two weeks ago violent clashes broke out in the Netherlands during the protests for the measures, while the first country in Western Europe to impose a lockdown was Austria, where vaccinations will be mandatory from February.
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