Germany

By Erik Kirschbaum

BERLIN, June 30 (Reuters) - German police said rampaging fans in some small eastern cities set rubbish bins on fire and threw stones after the Euro 2008 final but that there were few problems reported in Berlin, Hamburg and other big cities.

Germany lost Sunday's match 1-0 to Spain in Vienna.

A group of about 60 rioters emerged from a crowd of 500 in Magdeburg west of Berlin and rampaged in the city centre, setting bins on fire and throwing stones and bottles at police.

Eight police were injured and several cars damaged. Police said about 100 were detained.

In Schwerin north of Berlin, about 300 went on a rampage, setting bins on fire and throwing stones. Police used pepper spray to fight the attackers back and 17 police were injured.

Similar outbreaks of violence and skirmishes with police were also reported in Halle and Bautzen.

About 400 people blocked a main road in Bautzen early on Monday. When 200 police moved in to clear the road skirmishes broke out. Two police were hurt and 11 people were detained.

There was also violence last week in the formerly communist east, where unemployment is twice as high as in the west.

In Dresden last week, a group of 30 black-clad aggressors had attacked three takeaway kebab shops after Germany beat Turkey in the semi-finals. They injured two Turks, smashing windows, throwing bottles and burning a Turkish flag.

In Berlin, Germany's largest city with a population of 3.4 million, 600,000 fans watched on giant TV screens in a public viewing area and 65 people were taken into custody.

"Considering the masses of people out and about, the 65 detained is a small number," said a Berlin police spokesman. "There are usually more problems at any big festival."

In Germany's second city Hamburg, 74,000 watched in a public viewing area and there were only 13 arrests and 61 people taken into custody for minor offences, police said. "That's actually a below-average number for a night like that," said a spokeswoman.