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SEOUL - SOUTH Korean police used water cannon and detained more than 130 people early on Thursday when a protest against US beef imports turned violent.
Some 3,000 people late on Wednesday tried to break through a barricade of police buses in downtown Seoul by pulling the vehicles away.
They wanted to march to the presidential palace to protest at a government decision to resume the imports.
Opponents say the meat carries a risk of mad cow disease.
Police used hand-held fire extinguishers and water cannon to stop them, AFP witnesses said. Some demonstrators smashed bus windows and others tried to break down low walls blocking their path.
Protesters and police exchanged kicks and punches in early-morning clashes which ended with the demonstrators retreating.
A Seoul police spokesman said more than 130 were arrested for violence.
The government last week announced it had negotiated extra safeguards against any risk of mad cow disease. President Lee Myung Bak called Tuesday for stern action against violent protests.
The candlelit rallies, which have been mostly peaceful, began in early May after the government signed its original deal to resume the import of US beef. -- AFP
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