Police fire rubber bullets at Johannesburg protesters

Protester gather as they barricade the street in Finetown township, Johannesburg, South Africa, Wednesday, May 10, 2017. South African police have fired rubber bullets at rioters on the third day of street protests over government services in parts of Johannesburg. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe) (The Associated Press)

prev next

A protester holds a toy gun as other protesters barricade the street during a protest in the Finetown township, Johannesburg, South Africa, Wednesday, May 10, 2017. South African police have fired rubber bullets at rioters on the third day of street protests over government services in parts of Johannesburg. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe) (The Associated Press)

Protesters sing as they barricade the street, in Finetown township, Johannesburg, South Africa, Wednesday, May 10, 2017. South African police have fired rubber bullets at rioters on the third day of street protests over government services in parts of Johannesburg. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe) (The Associated Press)

JOHANNESBURG – South African police have fired rubber bullets at rioters on the third day of street protests over government services in parts of Johannesburg.

The violence on Wednesday in the Finetown neighborhood of South Africa's biggest city followed unrest this week in nearby Eldorado Park and Ennerdale.

Protesters in Finetown threw stones and burned tires. They are demanding land and housing, a common grievance in many poor areas of South Africa where people live in makeshift homes.

In separate violence, the African News Agency says protesters burned a police station and two police vans in Thohoyandou, a town more than 500 kilometers (310 miles) north of Johannesburg.

The South Africa-based agency says protesters were angry over the disappearance of a resident.