German police detain 200 fans in Dortmund

DORTMUND, June 14 (Reuters) Police detained about 200German and Polish soccer fans following clashes ahead of their World Cup Group A match today in the worst outbreak of trouble at the tournament so far.

German fans pelted police with beer bottles, fireworks and the chairs and tables from restaurants near Dortmund's Alter Markt, according to a Reuters eyewitness.

In separate clashes nearby small groups of German and Polish fans set on each other, a police spokeswoman said.

A Reuters TV cameraman suffered slight injuries after he was punched in the back of the head during the violence.

Police said some people had been injured by missiles, but none of them had been badly hurt. Police would not say how long they intended to hold the supporters detained in custody.

Hundreds of riot police closed off the Alter Markt to isolate the German fans and then moved in to take around 100 of them away.

Police had earlier detained around 70 Polish fans known to authorities as ''problem fans'' some armed with metal batons and other dangerous objects.

''We still have a heavy police presence in the city after German fans started to attack police on the Alter Market but the situation is calmer now,'' the spokeswoman added.

At first the mood in Dortmund was largely friendly with noisy fans drinking beer in the sunshine, but it turned darker as a group of German skinheads wearing black T-shirts and drinking on the Alter Markt began to behave threateningly.

A number of the German fans who had been detained were also known troublemakers, police said.

Tens of thousands of Germany and Poland supporters descended on the western German city to watch their teams in the match which kicked off at 9 pm (local time), but for months the match has prompted fears of fan violence.

Last November about 100 German and Polish fans brawled near the border.

Earlier today, one group of German supporters greeted their neighbours with the Hitler salute -- a criminal offence in the host country.

The relationship between the two countries, especially between their soccer supporters, has been tense and marred by history as Poland suffered greatly under German occupation during World War Two.

REUTERS DH RAI0219