Hundreds of masked hooligans have wreaked havoc�in the German�city of Leipzig to�mark the birth anniversary of�a far-right anti-Islam�PEGIDA offshoot.�

The Monday riots in the city's�Connewitz district saw supporters of the LEGIDA movement�burn�cars, smash�shop windows, and shoot�fireworks at buildings.

They also attacked with stones a producer with the Russian news agency Ruptly who was filming the violence from an apartment window.

Elsewhere in Leipzig, several thousand anti-refugee protesters rallied,�chanting, �We are the people,� �Resistance!� and �Deport them!�

The protests were met by rival rallies attended by�thousands of people.

The counter-demonstrations triggered a heavy presence by the police, who had water cannons but did not deploy them.

PEGIDA, a German acronym that stands for the �Patriotic Europeans against the Islamization of the West,� is represented in Leipzig by LEGIDA.

Since last year, LEGIDA has mobilized thousands of xenophobes across the city against Chancellor Angela Merkel�s decision to open the country�s doors to refugees.

More than one million refugees reached Germany�in 2015, mostly fleeing the conflict in Syria.

PEGIDA began to launch rallies in Germany in October 2014 and managed to attract supporters across the country.

The group was�caught in a series of scandals, prompting mass resignation among its�leaders and the movement's disappearance from�the German political scene last year.

However, PEGIDA�has made a comeback in the wake of the refugee influx which has caught Europe off guard.

By Press TV