Police on Wednesday forced dozens of opposition supporters from a site in the capital where five days of protests had drawn thousands, but demonstrators later returned and renewed their calls for the president's resignation.

Police charged into the street in front of parliament in the early morning and chased away more than 100 demonstrators who had remained overnight, Ivlian Khaindrava, a leader of the opposition Republican Party said.

But hundreds of young people shouting anti-President Mikhail Saakashvili slogans occupied the area a few hours later, and the crowd grew fast, reaching at least 1,000 as protesters returned.

Opposition forces have gathered at the site every day since Friday, when more than 50,000 people rallied.

The protesters initially called for changes in the dates of planned elections and in the electoral system, but later made Saakashvili's resignation their central demand. The protests are the biggest challenge to Saakashvili since his landslide election after the Rose Revolution four years ago.

"Misha, you will soon fall," young men shouted as they ran toward parliament to occupy the site.


Agencies