Berlin's iconic Tacheles arts centre has been cleared after decades of bureaucratic wrangling over the debt-ridden building.

BBC: Authorities shut Berlin's iconic Tacheles arts squat

"This is the theft of a work of art, supported by the police, " Tacheles spokesman Martin Reiter told a small gathering of supporters and journalists outside the building.

BBC: Authorities shut Berlin's iconic Tacheles arts squat