Violent start to summit's final day

Clashes between police and protesters have continued

A police raid on the headquarters of a group co-ordinating protest action at the G8 summit in Genoa has left at least 40 protesters injured.

They came in, blocked the door and kept beating us with sticks and kicking us, one after the other

Michael Gieser

The anti-globalisation movement, the Genoa Social Forum, said the police burst into its offices shortly after midnight (2200 GMT Saturday) and attacked the people inside.

A BBC correspondent who entered the building immediately after the raid said he saw a number of badly injured people, and pools of blood in the rooms.

More than 120 have been arrested

The summit ends at lunchtime on Sunday with the leaders of the world's richest nations due to sign a final communique, the centrepiece of which will be the G8's action plan for Africa.

More than 200 people, including 73 police, were wounded in clashes on Saturday, and more than 120 people have been arrested since Friday, some on charges as serious as attempted murder.

The turmoil has prompted Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien, the host of next year's summit, to propose rethinking the next G8 gathering.

Mr Chretien said that changes would be needed before next year's summit.

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"We have to reduce the size of the delegation to have a more informal type of meeting. There are too many people. Some have huge delegations - that is not needed," he said, adding that each country should be limited to 400 delegates and staff.

He is also reportedly considering holding the 2002 summit in a remote Rocky Mountain town that will be more difficult for protesters to reach.

Midnight raid

Five Britons were among 96 anti-capitalist protesters arrested when anti-riot police raided a school, which the Genoa Social Forum was using as a co-ordinating centre.

Police were apparently searching for computer disks and videos of earlier clashes.

Canada wants to avoid a repeat of these scenes at next year's G8 summit

Windows were broken, furniture smashed and there were pools of blood left on the floor.

"They came in, blocked the door and kept beating us with sticks and kicking us, one after the other," said Michael Gieser, a Belgian journalist who was staying in the school.

Police department spokesman Roberto Sgalla said the police were acting on a tip-off, and that iron bars, knives, blunt objects and black T-shirts had been seized.

The dead protester was named as Italian Carlo Giuliani

He said "about 10" had been hurt in the raid, and that other people taken to hospital had been injured earlier in the weekend.

Meanwhile, an official investigation has been opened into the fatal shooting of 23-year-old Italian protester, Carlo Giuliani, by a policeman on Friday.

The 20-year Carabinieri conscript, who is being treated for shock, could face manslaughter charges.

Africa plan

In talks on Saturday, the G8 agreed to set up a joint working group with African leaders to draw up plans to help the continent.

The proposals will be aimed at promoting democracy, preventing conflict, fighting corruption and encouraging foreign and internal African investment.

Chirac (left) and Bush did not see eye-to-eye on climate change

While there was consensus on the Africa programme, there were sharp disputes over the environment.

US President George W Bush met two of the strongest critics of his rejection of the Kyoto climate change accord, French President Jacques Chirac and German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder.

He put a positive spin on the meetings, saying: "We have agreed to reduce greenhouse gases, and we have agreed to continue the dialogue on how."

But EU Commission President Romani Prodi's evaluation was more downbeat. He said the US and EU had repeated their conflicting positions on the climate-change accord.

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Map shows "red zone", the exclusion area surrounding the Palazzo Ducale summit venue, and the outer "yellow zone", which was meant to be free of protesters but was breached.