By RAVEN SAUNT
Demonstrators have started looting churches in Chile as the long-running protests continue.
Thousands of people had gathered near the site in Santiago's Plaza Italia that has been used for three weeks as the main site of the mass protests.
The crowd chanted, carried banners and waved Chilean national flags as others flashed the lights on their mobile phones.
Protestors dragged church pews, statues of Jesus and other religious iconography out through the doors of the historic building before defacing it
They were photographed dragging church pews, statues of Jesus, religious canvasses and other iconography out through the doors of the historic building before setting much of it on fire.
Smoke was also seen billowing from the nearby headquarters of Pedro de Valdivia University, although it is not known if the protestors had also ignited that blaze as authorities said they are still investigating the cause.
The church was left completely stripped bare as the group worked together to pass the larger objects out of the doors, including a canvas of the Virgin Mary holding a baby Jesus (pictured)
Many of the demonstrations over the past 22 days have been peaceful but now it seems that they are becoming increasingly violent. Pictured: Two protestors remove a piano from the church
Many of the demonstrations over the past 22 days started out relatively peaceful but now it seems that they are becoming increasingly violent.
Rock-throwing demonstrators clashed with riot police a short time after the church was looted as the authorities responded with tear gas and water cannons.
The unrest began last month over a subway fare hike that prompted students to start jumping turnstiles in protest which gradually escalated and spread nationwide with a broad range of demands.
The demands included improvements in education, health care and a widely criticised pension system in one of Latin America's richest but most socially unequal countries.
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