Tens of thousands join 'Occupy' protests

NEW YORK, Oct. 15 (UPI) -- Tens of thousands of demonstrators took to the streets Saturday as a monthlong protest over wealth disparity that began in New York went global, reports said.

The "Occupy protests," which began as the "Take Back Wall Street" campaign in which thousands of protesters rallied in Lower Manhattan and staked a tent camp in a park, were mostly peaceful.

But a large demonstration in Rome took a violent turn, and police fired teargas and used baton charges against protesters, the Financial Times reported.

The newspaper said hooded militants infiltrated what had been a peaceful Occupy demonstration, set fire to the Defense Ministry building and vehicles, and vandalized a bank and shops. The militants appeared to belong to the black bloc -- fringe groups of far-left and anarchist militants.

Police said an officer was injured.

As several thousand people protested, many of those marching toward Piazza San Giovanni denounced the violence.

CNN reported firefighters battled a blaze at an Interior Ministry building, and police said hundreds of anarchists had confronted peaceful protesters.

"It's been completely hijacked by these violent factions, and the police are nervous, and the situation is very tense," Barbie Nadeau, a Newsweek correspondent, told CNN. "I myself saw at least -- I would say -- a dozen people who probably needed some hospitalization or some care, some stitches certainly."

Elsewhere, demonstrations remained mostly peaceful.

An online group calling itself the central site for the protest, United for Global Change, said more than 950 cities in 82 countries had rallies under way Saturday to protest the widening gap between rich and poor, CNN said.

Radio France International said protests were ongoing in Italy, Japan, Australia, Spain, Canada, South Korea, New Zealand, Greece, Germany, Britain and South Africa.

In London, the Times reported, more than 1,000 protesters demonstrated on the steps of St. Paul's Cathedral after police stopped them from marching into Paternoster Square, home of the Stock Exchange and Goldman Sachs' investment management business.

"What is happening here today is a culmination of greed that many people all over the world have worked towards from Cairo to London," WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange told London demonstrators.

CNN reported witnesses said tens of thousands of people protested in German cities, where signs read "Goldman Sucks" and "The government should be afraid of their people."

In Hong Kong, retired businessman Wong Chi Keung said, "We should not let the banks get away with being big bullies."

At a Tokyo march, Kesao Murakami said: "I'm here because young Japanese people are suffering for losing their jobs, but not many speak out their issue to the public. I really want young people to appeal forcefully to the public saying, 'We are in trouble.'"

About 2,000 people protested outside the central Reserve Bank of Australia in Sydney.

"I think people want real democracy," said Nick Carson, a spokesman for OccupyMelbourne.org. "They don't want corporate influence over their politicians. They want their politicians to be accountable."

A New York Times report from Sydney quoted one protester's rationale for participating in demonstrations.

"Everyone knows there's a stink in the room and this is our way of letting the government know that we're unhappy," the man said.

In Tokyo, protesters carried banners saying "No More Nukes" and "Free Tibet," CNN said.