Talks break off between Quebec and student groups

Talks have broken off between the Quebec government and student groups.

The sides had been trying to find a peaceful resolution to their differences, after weeks of unrest in the streets.

But two days of meetings failed to find a solution — and talks have now been suspended.

The negotiations began unravelling after rowdy protests last night and today in Montreal, which saw smoke bombs launched in the subway system and a window being smashed downtown.

After those incidents, the government booted the most radical of the three groups away from the negotiating table. It said that hard-line group — nicknamed the C.L.A.S.S.E. — had implicitly condoned the vandalism.

That move prompted the other two groups to storm out in protest.