More than a dozen people were injured in violent clashes between rioters and police in northern Spain after anti-fascist protests spiralled out of control, in the latest instance of civil unrest sweeping Europe .

Some 5,000 people gathered at a square in A Coruña, a port city in Galicia , on Wednesday morning to protest the visit of politician Santiago Abascal , the president of Spain’s far-right populist Vox party.

Tensions exploded towards the end of Abascal’s speech in the Plaza de María Pita as protesters threw eggs and police repeatedly charged in a bid to disperse the activists , some of whom threw stones and chairs back.

The fracas escalated as masked individuals near the Teatro Colón then began throwing flares and fireworks at police, who responded with a charge, according to La Voz de Galicia .

Clashes between riot police and protesters against visiting politician Santiago Abascal (AFP/Getty)

More containers were set alight across the city as night fell, while groups of protesters in the…