German president in Hamburg to assess damage from G20 protests

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier arrived in the northern port city of Hamburg on Sunday to speak with security officials and meet those injured and affected by violent anti-G20 protests over the past three days.

Hamburg Mayor Olaf Scholz is expected to accompany the president during his visit.

Leaders from the Group of 20 leading global economies - in Hamburg for a two-day summit that began Friday - had been confronted by thousands of protesters rallying against globalization.

The violence began on Thursday at the so-called "Welcome to Hell" rally, and escalated late Friday when rioters looted supermarkets and shops, built barricades, set fire to garbage containers and attacked police vehicles.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel had condemned the violent protests and looting that marred the summit but defended her decision to hold it in a densely populated urban area.

Clean-up work was already in full swing on Sunday as city workers used street sweepers to clear the roads, which were still full of barricades, glass shards and destroyed electricity boxes in the morning.