Story highlights Police at the scene "started throwing grenades and firing tear gas," student says

Protests against fee increases have raged nationwide since Monday

(CNN) Throngs of students stormed the South African parliament in Cape Town and trapped lawmakers inside to protest fee increases set to take effect next year.

University of Cape Town youth groups rallied students for Wednesday's protest, which started on campus and snaked toward parliament, about a mile away.

"The group of protesters was massive," said Jabulile Newman, 21, a university junior who attended the demonstrations.

Students stormed parliament grounds, pushing past guards and forcing open the gates. Once inside the grounds, they sat in front of the building to block parliament leaders from getting out.

Police at the scene "started throwing grenades and firing tear gas," Newman said.

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