Three people were detained after breaking into the grounds of Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal in Warsaw.
Scuffles broke out as demonstrators tried to break through a cordon which police formed around them outside the court buildings, public broadcaster Polish Radio reported.
Sylwester Marczak, a spokesman for Warsaw police headquarters, said that two officers were injured during the demonstration. "One policewoman has a shoulder injury and one policeman has a broken bone,” he added.
Marczak said protesters had been detained over incidents including disturbing the peace and insulting officers.
The demonstrations were sparked by a ruling from the Constitutional Tribunal, the country’s top court, restricting access to abortion.
The court's detailed verdict was published in an official gazette on Wednesday night, a step necessary for it to take effect.
In October, the court ruled that termination of pregnancies due to foetal defects should be banned, eliminating the most common of the few legal grounds for abortion in the predominantly Catholic country.
Under the new rules, abortions will only be permitted in cases of rape and incest, and when the mother's life or health is endangered.
Thursday’s demonstrations marked a spike in protests which have seen tens of thousands of women, liberals and anti-government demonstrators taking to the streets around Poland since October.
(pk/gs)
Source: PAP/IAR/Polish Radio
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