Violent clashes broke out both outside and inside the venue for the COP30 summit in Brazil’s city of Belem. Hundreds of delegates from dozens of countries were present at the venue at the time, creating a sensitive security situation. Those who broke into the complex were all protesters.
Though it's unclear if anyone was hurt, several ambulances were seen rushing to the building. Armed guards were also stationed outside to prevent further violence. The clashes have now ended but security is still on high-alert.
Officials were seen forming a human chain outside the main chamber where the summit was being held. They even used tables to barricade the entrance.
“I don't know which of the two groups end up being the first ones to break the security, but they go all the way into the door so the security reacts, they close the doors and this is the first moment of violence because they close the door super hard so you have like all these sub people. After this, it started escalating a bit more and they break out the doors and finally breaking to the venue,” a witness told Associated Press.
Security inside the Brazil COP30 venue falls under the responsibility of the UN, while local authorities take charge of the surrounding area.
UN police officers were asking those still inside the COP30 venue to evacuate the vast site of giant air-conditioned tents.
Reuters said the venue was surrounded by hundreds of protesters — many of them Indigenous people. Before the unprecedented clashes broke out, they had demanded access to the UN compound where thousands of delegates were present. The Indigenous communities were there to ask for climate action and forest protection — a cause already listed on the agenda.
"The Indigenous movement wanted to present its demands inside the blue zone but were not allowed in," said Joao Santiago, a professor at the Federal University of Para.
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.
"They entered the COP30 venue to protest the fact that the COP will end but the destruction continues."
The March for Health and Climate, the organizers behind the protest, sought to distance themselves from the incident.
"The march, which concluded before the COP30 venue, was a legitimate, peaceful, and organized expression of popular mobilisation, built through dialogue, responsibility, and collective commitment," the group said in a statement.
The UN spokesperson said "the venue is fully secured, and COP negotiations continue." Brazilian and UN authorities were investigating the incident, the spokesperson added.
