
Protest marches have been held around the world to mark International Workers' Day, and while some remained peaceful parades, others escalated into violent clashes and destruction.

Riot police in Paris arrested more than 200 anti-capitalist demonstrators today as they went on the rampage to mark May Day.

Water cannon and tear gas were used against the protestors, many of whom were anarchists belonging to the Black Bloc movement.

‘They have mainly targeted places of business, including branches of McDonalds and banks,’ said a Paris police spokesman.

‘More than 200 people were arrested by late afternoon, and isolated incidents of violence are on going.’

Worst hit was a McDonalds and Renault garage close to the Austerlitz railways station in the east of the city.

Cars and wheelie bins were also torched, while officers had rocks and other projectiles thrown at them.

Scroll down for videos

Paris is burning: A car and a motorcycle have been set alight outside a Renault automobile garage during the protest

French fries: A McDonald's restaurant is hit with petrol bombs thrown by activists during the traditional May Day rally in the center of Paris, France

Blasting off: A protester holds a strip of fireworks as they explode during a demonstration in Paris

Street weapons: A masked protester throws a rock during clashes at the May Day labour union march in Paris, France

Two sides: A riot policeman throws a teargas shell towards protesters outside a McDonald's in the French capital

Fighting fire: Emergency services put out a blazing car after thousands of people took to the streets of the French capital demonstrate on May Day

Social media posts had announced a ‘Revolutionary Day’ to coincide with similar demonstrations across Europe, and other parts of the word.

The police spokesman said some 1,500 hooded and masked anarchists had turned up on the sidelines of trade union marches.

Interior Minister Gerard Collomb said ‘the violence was completely unacceptable’, adding that ‘everything was being done to arrest’ those responsible.

Dictator fan: A man carrying a red flag and wearing a T-shirt showing the Stalinist dictator of North Korea, Kim Jong-un, marches in London today

Red flag flying here: Demonstrators wave Communist flags in Trafalgar Square today to mark May Day, which is being celebrated around the world

Unity is strength: Demonstrators take over Trafalgar Square in London today to show their solidarity with workers around the world

Government spokesman Benjamin Griveaux said there was particular anger at the protesters covering up their faces.

He said: ‘When you have sincere convictions, you demonstrate with your face unmasked. Those who wear hoods are the enemies of democracy.’

President Emmanuel Macron is in the process of reforming France’s employment laws, making it easier for bosses to sack workers.

Communist party: A man wearing a hoodie with 'Soviet Suprem' written on the front walks in front of a burning car in Paris while holding a can of beer

Inflamed passions: A car and motorcycle go up in flames after vandals set it alight during demonstrations in Paris to mark May Day

Police vs protesters: Crowds of demonstrators faced off against riot police during the events in Paris today to mark May Day

What's left? Vandals trash a street in Paris and spray a hammer and sickle on a wall during demonstrations to mark May Day today

Masked youth protesters with banners and placards block a road ahead of clashes with French police forces during a demonstration of workers from the private and public sectors as well as labour unions on the occasion of the annual May Day marches on the International Workers' Day in Paris

Railway workers are among those involved in three months strikes in a dispute over the government’s reforms of the loss making state-run railway SNCF.

This year’s May Day protests were intended to send a message of defiance to Mr Macron, who is currently on an official trip to Australia.

French unions put the number of peaceful protesters at Tuesday’s main May Day rally at about 55,000, though police put it at just under 20,000 - a figure well down on previous years.

Philippe Martinez, leader of the hard-Left CGT union said: ‘If we do nothing, the government will not back down.’

Fiery rhetoric: Protesters burn an effigy of US President Donald Trump during a demonstration marking May Day to honor workers in Bogota, Colombia

Anti-Americanism: A protester burns an US flag during a march through the streets of Medellin, Colombia, during May Day demonstrations

Rage: Demonstrators confront riot policemen during a May Day march in Medelin, Colombia today as protesters took to the streets around the world

Nazi Trump: Colombians in Bogota gather around a huge effigy of the US president featuring swastikas before setting it alight

No more tears: A protester returns a gas grenade launched by riot police during clashes between police and anti-government protesters at the annual May Day march, in Tegucigalpa, Honduras

Big stake: A protester attacks a police vehicle during clashes after a May Day march turned violent, in Santiago, Chile today

Big smile: A demonstrator hoists a sign opposing womb renting during the parade to commemorate the International Workers' Day staged by the Portuguese General Confederation of Labor and different political parties and groups on May Day in Lisbon

Rant: Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro delivers a speech during a May Day rally in Caracas as crowds look on and cheer

Mr Martinez is furious at the way Mr Macron is making it easier for bosses to fire workers, while also attacking hard-won work conditions and pension rights.

In turn, the president believes France urgently needs to modernise, saying: ‘We are going to continue reforming France in depth, with the certitude that our country needs this transformation to make up for the ground lost in previous decades.’

This year’s May Day also fell on the 50th anniversary of the 1968 Spring riots in France, that made headlines around the world.

The government of President Charles de Gaulle was threatened, as his ministers feared civil war and economic collapse.

De Gaulle fled to Germany at one stage, before parliamentary elections in June 1968 saw the protests fizzle out.

Images also show more than a dozen protesters being detained in Istanbul on Tuesday after trying to march towards Istanbul's symbolic main square in defiance of a ban on protests there.

Police can be seen cracking down hard on defiant demonstrators - arresting them with brutal force as they protested against government reforms.

Taking to the streets: Masked demonstrators dressed all in black march through Paris while claiming to be acting in the interests of workers

Anger: Demonstrators wearing masks and eye-protection march while waving anarchist flags and flares in Paris

Escape: Demonstrators flee from clouds of teargas during a May Day workers' rally in Paris today

A man walks past a burning car outside several garages, which have been damaged by protesters in Paris

Protesters react as teargas clouds and fire rages during a demonstration on the sidelines of a march for the annual May Day workers' rally in Paris

Thick, dark smoke rises from a burning car during a demonstration on the side lines of the march for the annual May Day workers' rally, in Paris

'Anti capitalist': A female protester helps herself to a drink as demonstrators loot a McDonald's restaurant

Anarchy makes me hungry: A masked man holds a waffle cone as he looks onto broken monitors at the McDonald

Turkey declared Taksim Square off-limits to May Day celebrations, citing security concerns.

Roads leading to the square were blocked and police allowed only small groups of labour union representatives to lay wreaths at a monument there.

Still, a group of some 25 people chanting 'Taksim cannot be off limits on May 1' tried to push their way into the square but were rounded up by riot police.

Going right: Nationalists march in Warsaw, Poland for May Day today. Anti-fascist groups blocked their procession through the city

Salute: Nationalist demonstrators in Warsaw today attempt to march through the city to mark May Day celebrations

You shall not pass: Counter-demonstrators block the way of the nationalist protesters in Warsaw today

Flag-bearers: Members of nationalist organisations in Poland march with masks and flags in Warsaw to mark May Day in the country

Taksim holds a symbolic value for Turkey's labour movement.

In 1977, 34 people were killed there during a May Day event when shots were fired into the crowd from a nearby building.

Meanwhile in the Philippines, around 5,000 people from various groups rallied near the presidential palace in Manila.

A masked and hooded protester uses a hammer to smash a pavement during clashes with French CRS riot police at the May Day labour union rally in Paris

Demonstrators pick up rocks and cobblestones and throw them towards police officers as teargas clouds rise during a demonstration in Paris

Demonstrators in Istanbul were confronted by armed police as they tried to break into the banned protest zone at Taksim square

According to reports more than a dozen protesters were arrested following violent clashes between civilians and armed cops in Istanbul

Dramatic pictures emerging from the scene show defiant demonstrators struggling against policemen as they are hauled away in Turkey

They were protesting over the failure of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte to fulfil a major campaign promise to end contractualisation, the widespread practice of short-term employment.

The protesters also demanded that the government address issues including low wages, unemployment and trade union repression.

In South Korea, thousands of labour union members rallied in central Seoul for a higher minimum wage and other demands.

In the Philippines workers took the opportunity of May Day to protest against controversial incumbent President Rodrigo Duterte

Demonstrators in the Filipino capital Manila set fire to a range of elaborate effigies which they had constructed as part of their protest

In South Korea, hordes of people gathered in the main square in Seoul to offer support to embattled trade unions in the country

They chanted slogans urging the government to implement a 10,000 won (£6.82) minimum wage and convert all non-regular employees to regular workers with equal pay and treatment.

The rally was organised by the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions.

The police estimated the crowd at 10,000 people.

The union members also demanded that the government scrap the restructuring of the shipbuilding and car industries, and reform the huge conglomerates that dominate the South Korean economy.

London involved: A march and rally marking International Workers Day is held in London's Trafalgar Square

Protesters set off flares and held up banners as they marched through the British capital

Men waving the flags of the Kudish YPG militia climbed one of the lions in Trafalgar Square

In Indonesia, about 10,000 workers from various labour groups rallied near the presidential palace in Jakarta to voice their demands.

Most of the workers came from Jakarta and nearby suburbs, but some travelled from West Java and Surabaya.

The protesters urged the government to avoid outsourcing, and to raise their wages.

They also asked the government to stop foreign labourers from working in Indonesia, saying it decreases employment opportunities for local workers.

About 2,000 garment workers also gathered at a park in Cambodia's capital, Phnom Penh, for a rally organised by a garment union coalition.

In Jakarta, Indonesia, flag waving protestors graced the streets of the capital as part of their peaceful May Day celebrations

Several thousands also turned out in Colombo, Sri Lanka in a show of force from several of the country's main worker's unions

Cambodian workers also used International Workers' Day to protest about the lack of working-class rights in their country

The workers wanted to march to the National Assembly to urge politicians to help them address labour-related concerns, but the group was stopped by riot police.

Prime Minister Hun Sun spent May Day with some 5,000 garment workers just outside Phnom Penh. He thanked the workers by announcing that each of them will receive 50,000 riel (£9.18).

With a general election coming up in July, Mr Hun Sen has for the past year been courting the large bloc of garment workers, whose unions have traditionally been strong supporters of the opposition.

Sri Lanka's government has postponed the rallies and processions that mark May Day because the week-long celebrations of the national festival of Vesak carry on until May 2 this year.

Big showing: Hundreds of thousands of Cubans march in the traditional May Day parade at Revolution Square in Havana, Cuba

Party time: Cubans assemble in their capital to mark May Day. In the background, pictures of Karl Marx and Che Guevara look on

Reliving the revolution: Huge crowds assemble in Havana to mark May Day, with many carrying banners and posters

The government said in a statement that the decision was taken following requests by leading Buddhist monks, who are very influential in the majority Buddhist country. Vesak is also known as Buddha Purnima and marks the enlightenment of Lord Buddha.

The government has asked political parties and trade unions not to hold rallies on May 1. Some have said they will ignore the government directive and mark the day.

Usually, Sri Lankan political parties and trade unions celebrate International Workers' Day with colourful parades and giant rallies to showcase their political and organisational strength.

The government said it will mark International Workers' Day on May 7.

Thousands of daring Russians staged a protest in the shadow of the Kremlin in a demonstration aimed at reinforcing the rights of workers

The army of workers could be seen crossing the famous Bolshoy Bridge in Moscow's city centre as part of their demonstration

The Russian May Day parade in St Petersburg was full of reminders of the country's past - including flags of past leaders like Lenin (pictured)

Police detain a protester during the May Day rally in St Petersburg, Russia, who appears to be draped in a rainbow flag symbolising gay pride

Members of the Russian Communist party and supporters took part in a huge march through the streets of the capital Moscow

In England the celebrations were slightly more tame, with the main event involving several pagans and druids climb Glastonbury tor to watch the sun come up

Hundreds of pagans perched themselves on the side of the hill to watch the sunrise over the fields of the West Country

People dressed up in strange ghoulish outfits to mark the occasion - also known as Beltane - which is believed to be the beginning of summer as well

The Archdruid of Glastonbury and Britain (left) led the ceremony in front of St Michael's Tower at the famous Somerset landmark

More than 100,000 people came out on the streets on Moscow to march in the traditional May Day parade.

Moscow's Federation of Trade Unions said about 120,000 people marched from the Red Square on the main streets of the Russian capital to mark May Day.

Over recent years, the parade became a highly orchestrated show of power by Russian authorities and the ruling United Russia party, with the demonstrators refraining from criticizing the government.

In St. Petersburg, Russia's second-largest city, however, Russians unhappy with the Kremlin's attempts to curtail internet freedom joined the official May Day demonstration.

Several hundred people braved the rainy weather and joined the column marching across St. Petersburg to protest the government's ban of popular messaging app Telegram.

About 10,000 people rallied in Moscow on Monday to protest the blocking of Telegram.

Labour Day was celebrated in Paris with a larger version of the general strikes that have been gripping the nation over recent weeks

In Catalonia, thousands of working class people took to the streets to demonstrate over poor working conditions for labourers

The protests, which went through the center of Barcelona, saw people waving Catalan flags in yet another display of Catalonian nationalism

In Hong Kong protestors carried enormous banners in the shape of emojis as they walked in perfectly straight lanes through the city streets

Meanwhile in Tokyo, demonstrators employed their own wacky protest methods, carrying characters from Despicable Me through the streets on floats

In Pakistan the parades were slightly more conventional - as revellers in Lahore celebrated the day with a festival of singing and shouting slogans

In Germany, far-right groups massed in the city of Chemnitz carrying green flags and wearing identical uniforms for their march

Other Germans in Bavaria celebrated with a strange display in which they attempted to erect a maypole in front of gathered crowds

There then followed a traditional beer drinking element to the festivities as the revellers, near Munich in Bavaria, made the most of the day

In Lebanon, the Lebanese Communist party was out in full force campaigning for greater rights for poorer workers throughout the country

Supporters of the grassroots movement donned hammers and sickles as they marched through the centre of the city of Beirut