More protests in Brazil amid social media calls for general strike

Thousands of anti-government demonstrators again took to streets in several Brazilian cities today after the president broke a long silence to promise reforms, but the early protests were smaller than those of recent days and with only scattered reports of violence.

Police estimated about 20,000 demonstrators gathered in a central square in the city of Belo Horizonte, largely to denounce legislation that would limit the power of federal prosecutors to investigate crimes in a country where many are fed up with the high rate of robberies and killings.