BANGKOK, Oct 7, 2008 (AFP) - Eight Thai policemen were injured in shootings and stabbings during clashes with thousands of anti-government protesters Tuesday near Bangkok's parliament building, police said in a statement.

Four were shot, according to the list handed to media at Bangkok Metropolitan Police headquarters, while four were stabbed.

Witnesses told AFP they heard multiple gunshots after police fired rounds of tear gas to try to disperse the crowd and create an exit route for hundreds of lawmakers trapped inside parliament.

A Thai cameraman who also witnessed the violence said one policeman was shot in the neck and another in the stomach.

'Both of them fell to the ground,' he told AFP.