Thousands protest against COVID cuts in the Netherlands Coronavirus pandemic News

Thousands of protesters took to the streets in Amsterdam to protest against the Dutch government’s COVID measures.

Thousands of protesters have taken to the streets of Amsterdam to protest against the government’s COVID-19 restrictions and vaccination campaign, as virus infections have set a new record.

Authorities were given the right to stop and search in various parts of the city, and protesters marched with these banners and umbrellas on numerous riot police vans patrolling the neighborhoods.

There are regular protests against COVID measures across the country and with a large rally on Sunday, farmers gathered in the capital and parked their tractors parked in the square of the Central Museum.

Crowds played music, shouted anti-government slogans and then marched through the streets, blocking traffic.

Al Jazeera’s Step Vassen said the mood at the rally was “quite hot” while the protests were peaceful.

“There is a wide range of people against government measures and a general distrust of politics,” he said.

“Now a lot of people are not following the rules and they’re breaking a lot of the rules that are still in place.”

During the march, police separated a small group of anti-fascist protesters and took them by bus to another location.

Radical right-wing groups in the Netherlands have often joined demonstrations against the restrictions on COVID-19, and police wanted to make sure there were no confrontations with anti-fascist activists.

The Netherlands had one of the toughest blockades in Europe during the month-end holiday season.

Thousands of people protested in Amsterdam against anti-coronary measures by the Dutch government [Peter Dejong/AP Photo]

Amid growing public opposition, Prime Minister Mark Rutte announced on Friday that he would reopen shops, hairdressers and gyms, despite partially removing the blockade despite a record number of new COVID-19 cases.

Infections hit a record high of 36,000 on Sunday, according to data released by the Netherlands Institute of Health (RIVM). The Netherlands has recorded more than 3.5 million infections and 21,000 deaths since the pandemic began.

The Rutter government ordered the blockade in mid-December, as a wave of the Delta variant forced the health care system to suspend all care except for the most urgent and it seemed that the rise in Omicron cases would be overwhelmed.

Non-essential shops, hairdressers, hairdressers and other service providers were allowed to reopen on Saturday under strict conditions.

Bars, restaurants and cultural centers have been ordered to be closed until at least January 25, as there is no certainty as to how the Omicron wave will affect hospital capacity.