Swiss police investigate "Kill Trump" protest banner: reports

GENEVA, Jan. 18 (Xinhua) -- Police in the Swiss capital Bern said Thursday they are investigating a provocative protest banner that read "Kill Trump with his own weapon", Swiss media reported on Thursday.

The banner was used in a weekend rally against the upcoming World Economic Forum (WEF) and against the expected attendance of U.S. President Donald Trump in Davos, according to Swissinfo, the website of the national broadcaster.

The banner featured at the head of a procession of 1,000 people who demonstrated against the forthcoming WEF meeting in Davos and mimicked a poster unfurled in a May 2017 Bern rally protesting Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

That banner read "Kill Erdogan with his own weapons!" and showed a gun pointed at the Turkish leader's head. It provoked a diplomatic spat between Switzerland and Turkey, according to Swissinfo.

Bern police and the public prosecutor are looking at whether a crime was committed regarding the latest banner, a spokesperson told the Swiss News Agency, SDA.

Trump will be the first U.S. president to attend the Davos forum since former president Bill Clinton in 2000.

The anti-WEF rally last weekend is the first in a series of demonstrations are set to take place in Swiss cities in the coming days.

Protesters argue that WEF is an elitist club of the world's wealthy and powerful who cause more problems than they solve.

The WEF showcase event will take place in the ski resort of Davos between Jan. 23 and Jan. 26 this year. Trump will reportedly arrive on Jan. 25 at the WEF showcase event and give a speech the following day.

He will be accompanied by a large delegation of U.S. cabinet ministers and officials. Enditem