INTERNATIONAL: Protesters set fire to the entrance of Australia's Old Parliament House in Canberra on Thursday during a demonstration for Aboriginal sovereignty.

The fire engulfed the front doors before it was put out. No one was injured during the incident.

Australian Capital Territory (ACT) police has agreed to what was supposed to have been a "small smoking ceremony" by protesters, but according to ACT police commander Linda Champion, it had gotten "a little bit out of hand".

Indigenous rights campaigners has been protesting outside the building for weeks in the build-up to the 50th anniversary of a permanent protest occupation site for Aboriginal rights, which is located on the lawn opposite the Old Parliament House.

Government lawmakers and Prime Minister Scott Morrison has condemned the protesters' actions.