World IN BRIEF : SOUTH KOREA : 3 Cities Rocked by Violent Protests

Thousands of radical students and labor activists fought riot police with firebombs and rocks in South Korea’s three largest cities. In the capital of Seoul, police responded with tear gas and arrested about 600 people but had no figure on injuries. The street battles there followed a two-hour rally in which 3,000 radical students and labor activists called for the overthrow of President Roh Tae Woo. In Pusan, on the southern coast, about 500 students, workers and dissident school teachers clashed with police after a rally in which they denounced the government for backing away from its promise for democratic reforms. And in Taegu, police again resorted to tear gas to stop about 300 demonstrators.