[Onthebarricades] GREECE Insurrection, December 2008

[global resistance roundup]

Overview: Three weeks of intense unrest during which students, 
anarchists and opponents of the government fought back against the 
police, threw paving stones and Molotovs, torched banks and shops, 
stormed police stations and prisons, held streets against the police, 
held a general strike, occupied universities, hung banners from the 
Acropolis, tried to storm Parliament, torched the Christmas tree in 
Syntagma Square, fired laser pointers at police... The government nearly 
fell, but somehow weathered the unrest, which faded after about three 
weeks. The immediate cause was the murder of a young dissident, Alexis 
Grigoropoulos, by a cop. The uprising is also viewed as channelling 
wider discontent ranging from the unpopularity of the conservative 
government and dissatisfaction with youth unemployment and lack of 
opportunities, to rebellion against capitalism asn an alienating system, 
and struggle against fascistic forces within the state.

See also: Occupied London blog which carried day-by-day reports and many 
of the texts of the uprising:
http://www.occupiedlondon.org/blog/

* Analysis: "Greeks understand protest like few others"
* Factbox: Years of unrest in Greece
* Does Greek unrest portend global unrest?
* Analysis: Greece and the insurrections to come
* Greek unrest reveals deep-seated social problems
* Analysis: "This chaos isn't over"
* Analysis: Unrest shows a deeper discontent
* Bank to pay for damage
* Analysis: "Potent mix of radicals" at university
* Analysis: What a mess our young have to face. No wonder they riot
* Analysis: "What Korea can learn"
* Universities assess riot damage
* Business cuts guidance due to unrest

* Day-by-day news roundup








http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/detaylar.do?load=detay&link=161030

[IMPRESSIONS] Greeks understand protest like few others

Having arrived in Athens the morning after the riots began, I did not 
have the chance to enjoy my usual haunts in the city.

I did have the opportunity, however, to see the office building across 
from where I often work burned and hundreds of kids hurl, first, oranges 
picked off of a nearby tree in Syntagma Square, and then a few moments 
later, Molotov cocktails at an army of riot police who stood by doing 
nothing except shielding themselves from the hurled fruit and pieces of 
marble broken off of the floor. What struck me, and probably most 
foreigners, however, were the “spectators”: well-dressed Athenians who 
it would appear had good jobs, who sat at the café in Athens’ main 
square, giggling and commenting on the aim and accuracy of 
projectile-throwing self-proclaimed anarchist protestors. It was only 
after coughing through about 10 minutes of tear gas that the 
“spectators,” many of whom carried surgical masks in their pockets, 
decided that it was best to leave the café.
Greeks understand protest like few others in the world. And it is this 
understanding, deep in the Athenian political culture, that the 
government was betting on when it decided not to intervene in the riots. 
Conservative Greek Prime Minister Kostas Karamanlis looks poised to lose 
his bet as five days of anarchy in the streets have ensued and hundreds 
of businesses and buildings across the country have been burned, turning 
popular opinion bitterly against him.
Likely drawing lessons from the French riots of 2005, where French 
President Nicolas Sarkozy, then interior minister, made a similar bet 
and allowed violence to escalate before declaring a “zero-tolerance” 
stance and later a state of emergency that helped him to consolidate the 
election, Karamanlis does not look perched to increase his narrow 
one-seat majority in Parliament. Rather, Karamanlis, whose popularity 
has been nose-diving after a multimillion euro scandal involving close 
comrades, an autonomous monastery and mafia-like monks who have 
embezzled tens of millions of dollars in real estate deals, looks to be 
on the brink of early elections with his popularity plummeting further 
with each new torched building.
The riots that have wrought havoc in much of downtown Athens have their 
roots in more than just the police killing of Alexis Grigoropoulos, the 
15-year-old boy who happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. 
Long-standing popular resentment of police, economic hardships, economic 
crisis, education reform, widespread government corruption and unpopular 
privatizations are but some of the many gripes that have coalesced to 
form this movement of self-described anarchists that has swelled to a 
broad-based leftist movement which includes a rainbow of interests that 
is dissatisfied with the government.
Riots situated in a deeper Greek political culture
However, not even this appears adequate to explain the degree of the 
riots and the extent of popular approval which, at least in the initial 
days, supported the democratic right of students to protest and were 
hesitant to endorse what they described as “police-state” measures to 
quash the riots. Although not advocating violence, popular opinion was 
sympathetic (and still is) to youth frustration with the system.
Interestingly, Greek society tolerates such behavior. Such riots are 
quite common during protest marches. It was only after rioters 
intensified their attacks to include more than just multinational 
companies and banks and started torching modern monuments and local 
businesses that popular opinion turned against the rioters.
The political culture of Greece is interesting, if not downright 
bizarre. Having led the movement that overthrew the military junta in 
1974 and after having experienced a number of casualties in this fight 
as tanks and police crashed through the walls of the National Technical 
University of Athens, the drafters of the civilian Greek constitution 
enshrined the right to asylum in universities.
Changing this asylum system -- which many point to as outdated given the 
political times -- is a hotly debated political issue. Advocates of the 
asylum system (who are growing fewer in number with each passing day) 
assert that rejecting such a constitutional right that has served as the 
lynchpin of the country’s democratic gains is a dangerous move. It is 
this system that they say guarantees Greek intellectual freedom.
Opponents point to the fact that many university campuses have turned 
into ghettos where illegal migrants sell knock-off handbags free from 
police scrutiny and where wanted criminals take refuge. Indeed, many of 
the protestors that were out recycling the stones thrown at police the 
night before (many of which were chipped out of marble slabs on the 
street) sought refuge in the schools.
Although many do, in such a crisis it is not right to blame Greek 
democracy. A more likely explanation is the frustration that many feel 
has resulted from the governance of three families (Papandreou, 
Karamanlis, Mitsotakis) that have ruled over Greece for generations and 
because too few have an adequate voice to advance their interests.
Thanassis Kotsiaros, a close friend and a senior adviser of a member of 
parliament and research fellow in the University of Athens, commented 
Wednesday over coffee, “Democracy in Greece allows for disobedience and 
deviant behavior to an extent that’s difficult to be seen and understood 
in other Western democracies.” That’s probably why the middle-aged woman 
sitting next to me in the posh café in on the outskirts of Kolonaki, the 
Nişantaşı of Athens, casually reached into her Louis Vuitton bag during 
Wednesday’s general strike (planned long before the shooting of the boy 
that set off the riots) and pulled out a white surgical mask and 
continued casually talking on her mobile before exiting the door and 
walking in the direction of the riots.

12 December 2008, Friday
DAVID NEYLAN ATHENS, GREECE








http://www.postchronicle.com/cgi-bin/artman/exec/view.cgi?archive=108&num=191409

Published: Dec 7, 2008 Share This Article | Send Us A Tip | Site Search

Factbox: Years Of Riots, Clashes With Police In Greece
by Staff

Hundreds of demonstrators clashed with riot police in Athens and the 
northern city of Thessaloniki on Sunday in a second day of protests at 
the shooting by police of a 15-year-old boy.
Following are some of the biggest riots that have rocked Greece since 
November 1973, when the brutal repression of a student uprising in 
Athens helped to bring down the military junta. Police have since been 
banned from Greek university campuses.
November 1985 - After the annual march to mark the student uprising of 
1973, anarchists riot in Athens. Youths clash with police in the 
volatile Exarhia district, where a policeman shoots dead 15-year-old 
Michalis Caltezas. Anarchists occupy the university chemistry faculty. 
Next day police storm the burning building and make arrests. 
Intermittent clashes between students and police continue for several 
months.
January 1991 - Riots break out across the country after a school 
professor, Nikos Teboneras, is killed during protests against education 
reforms in the southwestern city of Patras. Years later, demonstrators 
still chant in his honor: "Tebonaras is alive!"

November 1995 - Riots erupt after student protests in Athens and a 
revolt in the capital's Korydallos prison shortly before the anniversary 
of the 1993 uprising. Dozens are injured when police in Thessaloniki 
break up a march in support of the prisoners. In Athens, days of rioting 
ensue during which protesters attack banks and stores. Amid public 
outcry, the dean of Athens university lifts the ban on police entering 
the university and hundreds are arrested.
November 1999 - After a peaceful march marking the 1973 student 
uprising, clashes erupt between police and thousands of protesters 
opposing U.S. President Bill Clinton's 24-hour visit to Athens. His 
visit is suspended twice amid fear of protests. Anarchists attack 
government buildings and businesses in central Athens and more than 40 
are arrested.
June 2003 - Youths and Black Block anarchists battle police during an EU 
summit in Thessaloniki. The rioters, dressed in black, smash the windows 
of shops and banks and start fires with petrol bombs. They later shelter 
in university buildings but police arrest seven when they try to escape.




http://www.slate.com/id/2207290/

What's Going On in Greece?Do riots in Athens portend demonstrations in 
Paris and Cincinnati?
By Anne ApplebaumPosted Monday, Dec. 22, 2008, at 7:59 PM ET
An Athens anarchist throws a stone at riot policeFires burned in 
courtyards, shops were looted, and Molotov cocktails whistled through 
clouds of tear gas. Hundreds of schools and campuses were occupied by 
students, and riots brought a major European capital to a halt for more 
than two weeks. The police seemed powerless, the politicians helpless, 
the media confused.
No, I am not talking about Budapest in 1956 or Paris in 1968. I am 
talking about Athens over the last two weeks. Since Dec. 6, when Greek 
police shot and killed a 15-year-old boy, Athens, Thessaloniki, and 
other Greek cities have been consumed by apparently unstoppable violent 
demonstrations. Unlike the French riots of 2005, which were mostly led 
by disaffected immigrants and their descendants, the participants in 
these Greek riots appear to be middle-class university students. They 
weren't smashing up shops in impoverished suburbs, either: These 
self-styled anarchists are based in a "bohemian" neighborhood of central 
Athens called Exarhia and at a nearby university campus whose unused 
buildings, according to a rather extraordinary Greek law, cannot be 
entered by the police. So far, the rioters have done some $1.3 billion 
worth of damage.
Not, I'm guessing, that you've read all that much about them. Certainly 
the riots' relative absence from European and North American front pages 
proves that—the rhetoric of European unity aside—not all European 
countries are taken equally seriously. Although they are members of the 
European Union, the Greeks' major contribution to European foreign 
policy is their stubborn insistence (for reasons truly too complex to 
repeat here) on blocking international recognition of the Republic of 
Macedonia unless it changes its name to FYROM—the Former Yugoslav 
Republic of Macedonia—an acronym that everybody else finds laughable. On 
the domestic front, the Greeks are best known for having faked the 
economic data they needed in order to join the euro currency.
There may also be other, more local, explanations for why these riots 
feel as if they are taking place so far away from mainstream events. 
Greek political scientist Stathis Kalyvas argues brilliantly that they 
are facilitated by Greece's unique political culture: In the years since 
it overthrew military rule, the Greek political class has come to treat 
civil disobedience, even violent and destructive civil disobedience, as 
"almost always justified, if not glorified." Rioting is a "fun and 
low-risk activity, almost a rite of passage"; the anarchist subculture 
that thrives in central Athens is "abetted, and in some instances 
endorsed" by Greece's left-wing parties and mainstream newspapers.
And yet—even if Greece is unserious, even if anarchist subculture has 
uniquely deep roots in Athens, even if Greek corruption and youth 
unemployment are unusually high—it's a mistake to dismiss these riots as 
altogether peripheral. If nothing else, they show what can happen to a 
highly developed, post-ideological society where organized politics no 
longer interests large groups of people. One sympathizer says the 
rioters can be divided into three groups: communists, anarchists, and 
"younger people who like to think that they are anarchists but … don't 
know what they stand for. They are the ones who have been looting … they 
feel the only way to make themselves heard is to do these things."
Another describes the anarchist world of Exharia, approvingly, as "a 
parallel society with parallel values and parallel ideas." Yet another 
told a reporter that the tiny shops near the university deserved to be 
looted because they represent "the corporate machine." The thinking here 
isn't exactly sophisticated: This is a revolution, among other things, 
being conducted to the strains of Pink Floyd ("We don't need no 
education, we don't need no thought control").
Some are also blaming the weakness of Greece's mainstream social 
democrats, who, like social democrats elsewhere in Europe, have lately 
lost ground to the further left and are having trouble attracting young 
people. But I'm guessing the problem runs even deeper: The fact is that 
political parties in general are weak everywhere, and democracy is 
therefore weak, too.
Which isn't that surprising: After all, we are heading for a global 
recession, the causes of which may lie far away from Athens—or Paris or 
Cincinnati—and the solutions to which may not lie in the hands of local 
Greek, French, or Ohio politicians. Nobody much admires powerless 
leaders, and nobody much sees the point in voting for people who can't 
do anything, anyway.
Hence the riots in Athens and, maybe, elsewhere soon: If you aren't sure 
why you are unemployed, if you don't have the political vocabulary to 
explain what's wrong with your country's economy, and if you don't have 
leaders who seem able to fix it, then perhaps random violence seems a 
plausible response.






http://news.infoshop.org/article.php?story=20081220135521383

CrimethInc.: Greece and the Insurrections to Come
Saturday, December 20 2008 @ 01:55 PM CST
Contributed by: Anonymous
Views: 1,720
 From December 6, when police murdered 15-year-old Alexandros 
Grigoropoulos in downtown Athens, to the time of this writing, Greece 
has seen unprecedented rioting. Anarchists and students, supported and 
often joined by significant swaths of the population, have clashed with 
police, destroyed corporate and government property, and occupied 
government buildings, trade union offices, and media outlets, not to 
mention the usual universities. By December 12, police had used over 
4600 capsules of tear gas, and were seeking more from Israel and 
Germany—an ominous pair of nations, when it comes to repression.

What’s going on in Greece? Is it simply a matter of disenfranchised 
youth protesting a discouraging job market, or is there something more 
afoot?

 From December 6, when police murdered 15-year-old Alexandros 
Grigoropoulos in downtown Athens, to the time of this writing, Greece 
has seen unprecedented rioting. Anarchists and students, supported and 
often joined by significant swaths of the population, have clashed with 
police, destroyed corporate and government property, and occupied 
government buildings, trade union offices, and media outlets, not to 
mention the usual universities. By December 12, police had used over 
4600 capsules of tear gas, and were seeking more from Israel and 
Germany—an ominous pair of nations, when it comes to repression.

What’s It All About?

The corporate media has ignored the banners decrying police brutality 
and unaccountable authority, seizing instead on the idea that the unrest 
is the result of widespread unemployment and poor economic prospects for 
young Greeks. Thus prompted, many people—including some radicals—have 
focused on these issues as well.

At such a distance, we are not equipped to speak on the causes of the 
riots or the motivations of the participants, but we know better than to 
trust the media. Some corporate outlets have gone so far as to 
announce—in language that might be less surprising in a magazine like 
Rolling Thunder—that the events in Greece may presage the second coming 
of the anti-globalization movement thought to be vanquished after 
September 11, 2001. Though this might be true, we should hesitate to let 
the corporate media provide us with our narrative, lest it prove to be a 
Trojan horse.

If the riots are not about Alexandros after all, are we to believe 
that—were the economy more stable—it would be acceptable to shoot down 
15-year-olds? After all, police kill people all the time in the United 
States without anyone smashing a single store window over it. Is this 
simply because we have a lower unemployment rate?

Should we accept that the rage being vented in Greece is economic in 
origin, the implication is that it could be dispelled by economic 
solutions—and there are capitalist solutions for the crisis in no 
shorter supply than socialist ones. Perhaps the exploitation, misery, 
and unemployment currently rampant in Greece could be exported to some 
meeker nation, or else enough credit could be extended to the 
disaffected stone-throwers that they could come to identify as middle 
class themselves. These approaches have worked before; one might even 
argue that they have driven the process of capitalist globalization.

If Greece could somehow be transformed into Sweden—if every nation could 
be Sweden, without any having to be Nigeria—would it be OK to shoot 
teenagers then? They shoot anarchists in Sweden too, you know.

To the extent to which the resistance in Greece is simply an expression 
of frustration at dim financial prospects, then, it is possible that it 
can ultimately be defused or co-opted. But there are other forces at 
work here, which the corporate account de-emphasizes.

These riots are not coming out of nowhere. Masked anarchists setting 
fires and fighting the police have been common in Greece since before 
the turn of the century. In 1999, shortly before the Seattle WTO 
protests, there were major riots when Bill Clinton visited. At the time, 
the economy was livelier—and the socialists were in power, which seems 
to contradict the theory that the current unrest is simply a result of 
dissatisfaction with the conservative government.

Corporate media generally ignore anarchists, trivializing them with 
qualifiers such as “self-styled” when they refer to them at all. That 
corporate outlets have been forced to detail the anarchist involvement 
in these and other struggles in Greece attests to the depth and 
seriousness of anarchist activity. Leftists may attempt to portray the 
events in Greece as a general uprising of “the people,” and certainly 
countless “normal” people have participated, but it is clear even from 
this vantage point that anarchists started the rioting and have remained 
the most influential element within it.

We hypothesize that the rioting in Greece is not simply an inevitable 
result of economic recession, but a proactive radical initiative that 
speaks to the general public.

Though the rioting was provoked by the murder of Alexandros, it is only 
possible because of preexisting infrastructures and social 
currents—otherwise, such murders would catalyze uprisings in the US as 
well. Such an immediate and resolute response would not have occurred if 
anarchists in Greece had not developed a culture conducive to it. Thanks 
to a network of social centers, a deep-seated sense that neighborhoods 
such as the one in which Alexandros was killed are liberated zones 
off-limits to police, and a tradition of resistance extending back 
through generations, Greek anarchists feel entitled to their rage and 
capable of acting upon it. In recent years, a series of struggles 
against the prison system, the mistreatment of immigrants, and the 
privatization of schools have given innumerable young people experience 
in militant action. As soon as the text messages circulated announcing 
the police killing, Greek anarchists knew exactly how to respond, 
because they had done so time and again before.

The general public in Greece is already sympathetic to resistance 
movements, owing to the heritage of struggle against the US-supported 
dictatorship. In this regard, Greece is similar to Chile, another nation 
noted for the intensity of its street conflicts and class warfare. With 
the murder of Alexandros, anarchists finally had a narrative that was 
compelling to a great number of people. In another political context, 
liberals or other opportunists might have been able to exploit this 
tragedy to their own ends, but the Greek anarchists forestalled this 
possibility by immediately seizing the initiative and framing the terms 
of the conflict.

It’s Not the Economy, Stupid

That is to say, it’s always the economy. But it’s not just the economic 
hardships accompanying times of recession—the resistance in Greece is 
also a revolt against the exploitation, alienation, and hierarchy 
inherent in the capitalist system, that set the stage for police to 
murder teenagers whether or not a significant percentage of the 
population is unemployed.

To repeat, if alienation and hierarchy were themselves sufficient to 
inspire effective resistance, we’d see a lot more of it in the United 
States. The decisive factor in Greece is not the economy, but the 
cumulative efforts that have built a vibrant anarchist movement. There 
is no shortcut around developing an analogous movement in the US if we 
want to be capable of similar responses to oppression and injustice. 
Militant actions, such as some of the solidarity actions that have 
occurred in the US thus far, can provide some experience and momentum, 
but the creation of enduring cultural spaces is probably more essential.

Anarchists in the United States face a much different context than their 
Greek colleagues. Greece is a peripheral participant in the European 
Union, while the US remains the epicenter of global capitalism, with a 
correspondingly more powerful repressive apparatus. The legal 
consequences of participating in confrontations with the police are 
potentially more severe in the US, at least in proportion to the support 
for arrestees. Much of the population is more conservative, and both 
radical and oppressed communities are more fragmented, owing to the 
tremendous numbers of people in prison and the transience enforced by 
the job market. There is little continuity in traditions of 
resistance—in most communities, the collective anarchist memory does not 
stretch back beyond a decade at the most. The events in Greece are 
inspiring, but US anarchists can probably learn more from the 
infrastructures behind them than from the superficial aspects of the 
clashes.

Likewise, radicals in the US can draw inspiration from Greek anarchists 
without forgetting what is worthwhile in local anarchist communities. 
Though Greek anarchists clearly excel at confrontation, this does not 
guarantee that they are equally equipped to contest internal hierarchies 
and forms of oppression. The capacity to work out conflicts and maintain 
horizontal distributions of power is as essential to the anarchist 
project as any kind of offense or defense. It would be unfortunate if a 
fascination with the Greeks led US anarchists to deprioritize 
discussions about consent, consensus-based decision-making, and privilege.

The Insurrections to Come?

The events of the past two weeks may help reframe the global context for 
struggle, as the Zapatista revolt did in 1994. The rioting in Greece is 
not the only major unrest in the world right now, but it is perhaps the 
most promising, because it is explicitly directed against hierarchical 
power.

Most current hostilities, even those not organized by governments, are 
not as promising. Not everyone who takes up arms outside the state’s 
monopoly on violence is fighting for the abolition of hierarchy. 
Nationalist campaigns, fundamentalist crusades, religious conflicts, 
ethnic strife, and the gang warfare of illegal capitalism pit people 
against each other without any hope of liberation. We have to set 
visible precedents for liberation struggles if we hope future conflicts 
will pit the oppressed against their oppressors rather than against each 
other. Greece may be one such precedent. We can create similar 
precedents on smaller scales in the US, by taking the initiative to 
determine the character of confrontations with authority. The anarchist 
mobilization at last summer’s Republican National Convention was 
arguably an example of this, though certainly not the only format for it.

Today, party communism is largely discredited, and most influential 
resistance movements do not see seizing state power as feasible or 
desirable. This leaves two roads for critics of the current world order. 
One is to support reformist heads of state such as Obama, Lula, and 
Chavez, who cash in on dissent to re-legitimize the state form and, as 
if incidentally, their own power. On the other hand, there is the 
possibility of a struggle against power itself—whether waged 
consciously, as it currently is in Greece, or as a result of complete 
social and economic marginalization, as in France in 2005. The latter 
path offers a long struggle with no victory in sight, but it may be the 
first step towards a new world.

Resources

Our friends at the Center for Strategic Anarchy are following events in 
Greece closely as they unfold, and their website 
www.anarchiststrategy.blogspot.com is an excellent resource for news and 
updates. We also recommend this collection of stirring photos from the 
conflict.

If something scares us, it is the return to normality. For in the 
destroyed and pillaged streets of our cities of light we see not only 
the obvious results of our rage, but the possibility of starting to 
live. We no longer have anything to do, other than to install ourselves 
in this possibility and transform it into a living experience: by 
grounding on the field of everyday life, our creativity, our power to 
materialize our desires, our power not to contemplate but to construct 
the real. This is our vital space. All the rest is death.

-from a statement from the occupation of the Athens School of Economics 
and Business







http://www.nowpublic.com/world/greek-riots-reveal-deep-seated-social-problems

Greek riots reveal deep seated social problems
Share:
by Teacher Dude | December 19, 2008 at 03:07 am
423 views | 85 Recommendations | 5 comments
Photos

Many people across the world have been shocked by the scale of violence 
witnessed over the last 13 days in Greece. Scenes of intense 
confrontations with the police and a level of destruction that you 
normally wouldn't associate with a country famed for its natural beauty 
and long history.

However, away from the beaches and the museums there are has been a 
growing sense of despair amongst people, especially those under 25 that 
the country they live in has no place for them. A feeling that those in 
charge politically and economically lead lives cocooned by wealth and 
family connections which leave them indifferent to the problems faced by 
the rest of the population.

Cronyism, corruption and lack of accountability have eaten away at 
people's respect for institutions at the heart of Greek life. A fact 
that was vividly illustrated this week by two decisions which added to 
the impression that those in authority are above the law.

The first concerned the parliamentary report on the Vatopedi corruption 
scandal. The case which involved the dubious acquisition of state owned 
property by the Vatopedi Orthodox monastery involved several senior 
government officials and cost hundreds of millions of tax payer's money. 
However, despite a deluge of evidence indicating the misuse of office by 
high ranking government members the report concluded that there were no 
grounds for criminal charges.

This is simply the latest in a series of 45 scandals that have come to 
light since the New Democracy party came to power in 2004 on a platform 
of clean government.

The other case which has helped undermine faith in the Greek justice 
system and especially ELAS (the national police force) was the verdict 
in the Augustinos Dimtrios case which came out last week. Dimitrios, a 
university student from Cyprus was savagely beaten by eight police 
officers in an incident which was captured on live TV. Although the 
officers involved were found guilty none was sentenced to a jail term, 
instead they received a suspended sentence.

This has added to the sense, amply supported by numerous cases of police 
violence that law enforcement officials in Greece operate above the law, 
accountable to no one. One of the reasons why the clashes between 
protesters and riot police over the last week have been so fierce is the 
anger provoked by the possibility that the officer charged with killing 
15 year old Alexis Grigoropoulos will walk free.

A toxic mix, of unemployment, disillusionment and frustration has driven 
young people onto the streets time and time again, it has led them to 
occupy 600 schools nationwide and hundreds of university departments. As 
of yet there has been no concerted demands for a program of political 
change, however, this simply reflects the fact that there are so many 
disparate participants involved in the protests. The speed and scale of 
the reaction has been such that there is no one group of people or 
organisation that can truthfully say that represent the demonstrator's 
will at the present time.







http://www.deseretnews.com/article/0,5143,705270242,00.html

Greek riots a symptom of greater discontent
By Elena Becatoros
Associated Press
Published: Saturday, Dec. 13, 2008 12:24 a.m. MST
5 comments
| E-MAIL | PRINT | FONT + -
ATHENS, Greece — Protesters took to the streets of Athens for the 
seventh consecutive day Friday, vowing to maintain pressure on the 
government with both peaceful demonstrations and violent clashes that 
left one police officer engulfed in flames.
Youths pelted riot police with rocks and firebombs. One officer flailed, 
covered in blazing gasoline, as his colleagues rushed to extinguish him. 
He was ultimately unhurt.
Demonstrators in France and Germany put on shows of support for the 
Greek protests, which are driven in part by the widening gap between 
rich and poor in a country where the minimum monthly wage is $850, 
graduates have poor job prospects and the government is making painful 
reforms to the pension system.
"It is clear that this wave of discontent will not die down. This rage 
is spreading because the underlying causes remain," said veteran 
left-wing politician Leonidas Kyrkos. "These protests are a vehicle with 
which people can claim their rights and shatter indifference and false 
promises."
Beleaguered Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis ruled out early elections, 
however, saying from Brussels, Belgium that the country needs a steady 
hand to steer it through the global financial crisis.
Story continues below

"That is my concern and the concern and the priority of the government, 
and not scenarios about elections and successions," he said.
"We must make a very clear distinction between the overwhelming majority 
of the Greek people who of course have every right to express their 
sorrow at the death of a young boy, and the minority of extremists who 
take refuge in acts of extreme violence."
Dozens of people have been treated in hospitals during the unrest, 
sparked last Saturday by the death of 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos.
The level of violence has abated but tear gas and the smoke from burned 
cars still hang in the air in central Athens. Hundreds of businesses 
have been burned or smashed and looted in cities across Greece. Banks in 
particular have been targeted, with terrified employees fleeing as 
protesters smashed recently replaced windows of branches along central 
Syntagma Square.
"Financial targets are being attacked, like banks, to prove a point of 
economic oppression ... some people hardly have enough eat," said 
Constantinos Sakkas, a 23-year-old protest organizer.
"We're against the attacks on small stores," he added. "The purpose of 
all this is for our demands to be heard. This just isn't for us. It's 
for everyone."
In Paris, about 300 demonstrators gathered outside the Greek Embassy. 
Some scuffled with police and spilled over onto the Champs-Elysees, 
partly blocking Paris' most famous avenue, some ripping out streetlights 
from the center of the road as they moved along.
"Police, pigs, everywhere!" they shouted, bemused bystanders in red 
Santa hats watching as police vans with riot officers in helmets and 
shields marched down the avenue in their wake.
Outside the embassy, demonstrators shouted "Murderous Greek state!" and 
"A police officer, a bullet, that is social justice!"
Hundreds of protesters also marched through Berlin's Kreuzberg 
neighborhood, behind a van broadcasting messages of solidarity with the 
Greek protesters.
Earlier in the week, protesters in Spain, Denmark and Italy smashed shop 
windows, pelted police with bottles and attacked banks, while in France, 
cars were set ablaze outside the Greek consulate in Bordeaux, where 
protesters scrawled graffiti warning about a looming "insurrection."






http://www.setimes.com/cocoon/setimes/xhtml/en_GB/features/setimes/roundup/2008/12/12/roundup-bs-04

Business: National Bank of Greece to fund riot damage
12/12/2008
Greece's National Bank announced special measures to help restore small 
and medium businesses affected by a week of riots. Also in business: the 
Central Bank of Cyprus and the Central Bank of Qatar sign an agreement, 
and Romania's Rompetrol expands its capacity.

The loan will cover damage caused during this week's riots in Athens. 
[Getty Images]
The National Bank of Greece announced on Tuesday (December 9th) special 
measures to restore the operation of small and medium-sized businesses 
damaged during recent street riots. The measures include suspension of 
monthly loan instalments for up to 12 months and issuance of new loans 
with a 12-month grace period to repair damaged businesses, equipment and 
merchandise.







http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/dec/14/greece-riots-youth-poverty-comment

In Athens, middle-class rioters are buying rocks. This chaos isn't over
Helena Smith has reported from Greece for two decades, but had never 
seen anything like the riots that swept the country last week. Here she 
tries to make sense of an eruption of anger
• Helena Smith
• The Observer, Sunday 14 December 2008
How much tear gas can a nation take? How many stones can it collect? To 
ask such questions of an EU member state that is supposed to be as 
sophisticated as it is modern might seem far-fetched, even silly.
To ask them four years after that country basked in the glory of staging 
one of the most successful Olympic Games might be considered absurd. But 
yesterday, as Greece entered a second week of pitched battles between 
rock-throwing protesters and riot police - with security forces turning 
to Israel and Germany to replenish depleted reserves of toxic gases to 
contain the angry crowds - such questions did not seem foolish. Or, I'm 
sad to say, remotely absurd.
Athens is in a mess and it's not just the rubble or burned-out buildings 
or charred cars and firebombed rubbish bins and smashed pavements that 
now stand as testimony to unrest not seen since the collapse of military 
rule in 1974. Twenty-two years after I moved to Greece I have looked 
into eyes full of anger and despair. At night, as marauding mobs of 
Molotov-cocktail wielding youths have run through the city's ancient 
streets, I have closed the shutters of the windows to my home. My 
friends have done the same.
Those of us who live here - who have seen how frayed the fabric of 
public order can become - now know, in no uncertain terms, that the orgy 
of violence that has gripped this beautiful land masks a deeper malaise. 
It is a sickness that starts not so much at the top but at the bottom of 
Greek society, in the ranks of its troubled youth. For many these are a 
lost generation, raised in an education system that is undeniably 
shambolic and hit by whopping levels of unemployment (70 per cent among 
the 18-25s) in a country where joblessness this month jumped to 7.4 per 
cent. If they can find work remuneration rarely rises above €700 (this 
is, after all, the self-styled €700 generation), never mind the number 
of qualifications it took to get the job. Often polyglot PhD holders 
will be serving tourists at tables in resorts. One in five Greeks lives 
beneath the poverty line. Exposed to the ills of Greek society as never 
before, they have also become increasingly frustrated witnesses of 
allegations of corruption implicating senior conservative government 
officials and a series of scandals that have so far cost four ministers 
their jobs.
With these grievances in mind, young people (who would not normally see 
themselves as revolutionaries and are a far-cry from the 'extremists' 
Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis says are behind the disturbances) have 
begun stockpiling stones, rocks and crushed marble slabs from Salonika 
in the north to the resort islands of Corfu and Crete in the south.
They have also started selling them on - at three stones a euro - to 
other protesters whose parents may live in Hollywood-style opulence, or 
indeed on the breadline, but who are bonded by a common desire to hurl 
them at that hated symbol of authority: the police.
The ferocity of the riots has numbed Greeks. Yet I write this knowing 
that the protests are not going to end soon. Greece's children have been 
startled by their own success - and by reports of copycat attacks across 
Europe - and almost unanimously they believe they are on a winner.
'It's like a smouldering fire,' says Yiannis Yiatrakis who preferred to 
leave his study of abstract mathematics to take to the streets of Athens 
last week. 'The flames may die down but the coals will simmer. One 
little thing, and you'll see it will ignite again. Ours is a future 
without work, without hope. Our grievances are so big, so many. Only a 
very strong government can stop the rot.'
So how did it come to this? How did a country more usually associated 
with sun-kissed beaches and the good life erupt into a spasm of 
destruction that has shaken it to the core? How could an entire 
generation - most of whom were not even born when I arrived here - go 
unnoticed and yet nurture such burning rage? And who is to blame? Greek 
society, the state, or a political system running on empty that no 
longer inspires confidence or trust?
Like so many, I was forced to ask all these questions last week as I 
walked through scarred streets that in more ways than one have become 
their battlefield. My hope is that those in power, the crooked 
politicians, the corrupt judiciary, the scandal-ridden church, will 
ultimately tour the same routes.
It began with one death, one bullet, fired in anger by a hot-headed 
policemen in the heart of Athens' edgy Exarchia district on last 
Saturday. At the time most Greeks - including those who are compelled 
financially to live with their parents into their late thirties - were 
sitting in front of their TV sets or were out at their local tavernas.
No one thought they would wake up to a revolt in the streets. But the 
death of Alexandros Grigoropoulos, a tousled-haired teenager from the 
rich northern suburbs was the match that lit the inferno. If the killing 
had happened in any of the capital's wealthy satellite suburbs, the 
reaction might well have been more subdued.
Exarchia, however, is Athens' answer to Harlem (without the racial 
component). It is here that anarchists, artists, addicts, radical 
leftists, students and their teachers rub shoulders in streets crammed 
with bars and cafes that are covered with the graffiti of dissent. It is 
Athens's hub of political ferment; a backdrop of tensions between 
anti-establishment groups and the police.
Within an hour of the boy's death thousands of protesters had gathered 
in Exarchia's lawless central square screaming, 'cops, pigs, murderers,' 
and wanting revenge. At first, it is true, the assortment of self-styled 
anarchists who have long colonised Exarchia piggy-backed on the tragedy, 
seeing it as the perfect opportunity to live out their nihilistic goals 
of wreaking havoc. But then middle-class kids - children had got good 
degrees at universities in Britain but back in Greece were unable to 
find work in a system that thrives on graft, cronyism and nepotism - 
joined the protests and very quickly it became glaringly clear that this 
was their moment, too. Theirs was a frustration not only born of pent-up 
anger but outrage at the way ministers in the scandal-tainted 
conservative government have also enriched themselves in their five 
short years in power.
Now the million-dollar question is whether protests that started so 
spontaneously can morph into a more organised movement of civil unrest. 
What is certain is that Karamanlis's handling of the disturbances will 
go down as a case study of what not to do in a crisis. Seemingly 
disoriented and removed, the government's popularity has dropped 
dramatically over the past week. Even diehard conservatives have called 
me to say they'll be jumping ship. So far, Karamanlis has roundly 
rejected demands that he call early elections which means Greece will be 
saddled with a lame-duck government (the New Democrats are anyway 
hampered by a razor-thin one-seat majority in the 300-member parliament) 
for several months yet.
With daily demonstrations planned in the weeks ahead Greek youth are not 
going to give in easily. Far from calming spirits, the tear gas that has 
been used so liberally against them has only stoked their ire.
A fragile democracy
 From the bitter civil war that raged between 1946 and 1949 to the 
1967-74 military dictatorship, Greece's postwar history has been more 
tumultuous than most. The defeat of the communist EAM party with the 
help of British and US forces in 1949 led to decades of authoritarian 
right-wing rule.
Thousands of leftwingers were imprisoned or sent to labour camps. The 
right-left divide was later reinforced on 21 April 1967 when in a coup a 
group of US-backed junior officers, known as the Colonels, seized power.
In a spontaneous uprising on 17 November 1973, students at Athens 
Polytechnic rebelled against the regime, leading to the Colonels' fall 
in July 1974. The restoration of democracy under the late Konstantinos 
Karamanlis laid the foundations for a reconciliation between left and 
right under Andreas Papandreou, who introduced socialist government to 
Greece in 1981.
• This article was amended on Sunday 21 December 2008. A slip of the 
finger last week reduced by 100 the membership of the Greek parliament; 
it has 300 members. This has been corrected.






http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/15/world/europe/15greece.html

Potent Mix of Radicals at University in Athens

Olivier Laban-Mattei/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images
Young demonstrators, many of them college students, in front of riot 
control officers on Saturday near the Parliament.

By RACHEL DONADIO
Published: December 14, 2008
ATHENS — Early Saturday morning inside the gates of Athens Polytechnic, 
a dozen groggy young people in hooded sweatshirts slumped on folding 
chairs around a smoky fire. Others trickled in, holding cups of coffee. 
Gypsy children scampered around with wheelbarrows, collecting empty beer 
bottles. One child lit a cigarette.
But the young people were not recovering from a long night of drinking 
or studying. They were preparing for revolution.
Many of the violent protests that have rocked Athens in recent days, 
since a 15-year-old was killed by a police bullet on Dec. 6, have taken 
place in and around the school, driven by a group of anarchists who have 
often occupied the buildings here.
Come sundown on many nights, the Polytechnic, three graffiti-covered 
neoclassical buildings set amid pine trees, became an apocalyptic scene. 
Garbage fires burned in its front courtyard. On nearby streets, youths 
throwing gasoline bombs and rocks clashed with riot police officers 
armed with tear gas. The hulks of burned-out cars lay like carcasses in 
the streets.
Someone spray-painted “Don’t blame us, the rocks ricocheted” on a wall — 
a reference to a statement by the lawyer for the policeman who killed 
the teenager, who said the bullet did not hit the boy directly.
The National Technical University of Athens, as the Polytechnic is 
officially called, is one of Greece’s leading universities, training 
engineers, architects and scientists since 1836. It moved its main 
campus outside the city center in the 1980s, leaving its downtown 
buildings, which now house just the architecture and engineering 
departments and an auditorium, largely to the whims of protest groups.
The university administration has tended to view the demonstrators as 
uninvited houseguests who overstayed their welcome so long ago that they 
have become fixtures.
But these protests have been different. “In former times, a couple of 
years ago, there were only students protesting,” said Konstantinos 
Moutzouris, the rector of the Polytechnic. “This time there are all 
kinds of groups — this is difficult to control.”
Conversations with those inside the Polytechnic revealed a mix of 
students, older anarchists and immigrants protesting everything from 
police brutality to globalization to American imperialism. Some are 
simply thrill-seekers along for the ride. Mr. Moutzouris estimated that 
there were 50 protesters taking refuge inside the gates, joined by 
hundreds of others each evening.
Under an asylum law instituted after the police crushed a student 
rebellion at the Polytechnic against the military junta in 1973, the 
Greek police are not allowed on universities’ property unless requested 
by administrators.
Tensions between the police and protesters are so high that Mr. 
Moutzouris said asking the police to intervene would cause even more 
disorder. “We’re not in the mood of inviting them,” he said. “I think we 
would have damages and even some people hurt.”
He said the architecture and engineering faculty planned to meet with 
protesters Monday to urge them to leave.
Greece has endured a steady level of political violence for decades. 
Starting in the mid-1970s, the terrorist group November 17 — named for 
the date of the 1973 Polytechnic crackdown — killed at least 23 people 
in several attacks until the Greek authorities largely dismantled it 
before the 2004 Athens Olympics.
Last year, another group fired a rocket-propelled grenade at the United 
States Embassy here, causing damage but no injuries.
Adding to the tensions, the police are seen here as both overly 
aggressive and disconcertingly passive. Though the latest violence was 
sparked by a police bullet, the government told the police not to use 
force to tamp down the protests, to avoid further mayhem. The cost of 
the ensuing riots is estimated at $1.3 billion nationwide.
That the authorities have not identified and arrested the protest 
ringleaders also seems a question of political will.
Outside the university gates on Saturday morning, merchants were 
sweeping up broken glass from their vandalized shops. Asked what the 
stores and their owners had to do with the death of the teenager, one 
black-clad young woman at the university who declined to give her name 
said they represented “the corporate machine.”
Protesters have said that they will continue to demonstrate until the 
officer charged with killing the teenager, Alexandros Grigoropoulos, is 
tried and jailed.
The young woman said the anarchists held “collective meetings” in the 
university auditorium. They also organize through text-message chains 
and on Web sites like indymedia.org.
Greek authorities have insisted that the violence has been driven by a 
radical handful, whom they refer to as “the known unknown.”
That term is “nonsense,” said Dimitris Liberopoulous, 44, a freelance 
book editor and anarchist sympathizer who discussed the protest movement 
over coffee in Exarchia, the neighborhood surrounding the university. 
“It’s a game of semiotics.”
He said that the authorities did not know who the protesters were and 
did not understand their frustration at class division, the poor 
economy, a broken education system and a corrupt government.
It is unclear whether the anarchists have ties with terrorist groups. 
But security experts fear that terrorists might see the new unrest as 
fertile ground for attacks. They also worry that the anarchists 
themselves might up the ante.
Though Athens was largely calm on Sunday, more protests are expected 
this week.
“There’s a proverb,” Mr. Liberopoulous said, “that a civil war never ends.”






http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/dec/14/youngpeople-greece

What a mess our young have to face. No wonder they riot
With the dismal bequest left by his generation, a film-maker and father 
argues the Greek unrest should be no surprise to us
• Nick Fraser
• The Observer, Sunday 14 December 2008
When the life we know came unglued, I was on the Mekong, between Vietnam 
and Cambodia, watching peasants in conical hats sell pineapples from 
boats. It was two months ago and I found I was thinking about the world 
my bright and beautiful 18-year-old daughter, travelling with me, would 
now inhabit. The same thought occurred to me in New York on the night 
when Obama was elected, as I walked by the Hudson, surprised to find 
myself shedding tears of relief among similarly affected strangers. And 
it lingered with me in rainy Oxford last week - as young rioters wreaked 
havoc in Greece I watched teenagers who looked as though they were 
waiting to be interviewed for a university place sitting anxiously in 
cafés with their parents.
These 18-year-olds were neatly dressed, sober-looking. They didn't look 
like the young, rock-band Blair. What will become of them, I asked 
myself. What will their lives be? The job market which so easily 
provided support, and the means to travel, is drying up. Will my 
daughter's generation study longer in order to keep from being out of 
work? How will we afford to allow them to do this?
I wonder what I can reasonably bequeath her and her generation. I'd like 
not to seem wholly negative, or indeed entirely bemused. There must be 
something of value I can find in my own life and times.
Normally, the condition of uncertainty appeals to me. But these are not 
normal times, and I'd like to be sure that the world available to my 
daughter and her peers - surely, whatever the spoilsports in the media 
say, among the best-educated in Britain - will be habitable with a 
degree of security. It is no longer possible to be even reasonably 
certain about this.
Aghast, I experienced something of the same sense of recognition after 
the planes hit the tall buildings, appearing to usher in a new century. 
But the New Crash (I can't think of another, more suitable term) is both 
larger and harder to understand. It was possible before October to 
register the existence of current ills - the already degraded 
environment, mass murder once again perpetrated for ideological reasons, 
feckless liberal responses to poverty, wars fought for the dumbest 
reasons - while remaining at some distance from them. You could hope, 
somehow, that things wouldn't be as bad as they seemed.
People my age had protested about many things, steeping themselves in 
advocacy. With respect to such liberal causes as sexual freedoms and 
gender equality, our record wasn't bad. But there was much that remained 
beyond the reach of activism, no matter how persistent or ingenious. The 
least tractable aspects of our times - the ones with which subsequent 
generations would have to contend, most urgently - remained unresolved. 
Now something quite significant, and perhaps irreversible, appears to 
have happened. In this context, I think of Sir David Attenborough. He 
frolicked with seals and great apes, playing spot-the-species when it 
was still possible to believe that the animals he loved could live 
untouched. Only in grand old age did he come to acknowledge how wrong 
he'd been. In different ways, my generation are all of us like Sir 
David. We knew and then we didn't know. And now, alas, we do know.
The great political event of my life was the collapse of the 
worm-infested building of what was known, misleadingly, as socialism. I 
find it hard to explain to my daughter's generation that people did 
believe in the bizarre fictions of Marxism-Leninism. Psychopaths were 
taken seriously, revered in the West for their half-baked ideas. Mass 
murder apart, the worst thing about places such as the GDR or Mao's 
China was the way they destroyed potential. It worries me that 
18-year-olds, who have not known the absence of possibility, may fail to 
understand how easily it can be removed, and with what difficulty it is 
restored.
There are many opponents of the open world - jihadists, but also the 
growing number of the young and nationalistic, alienated from what they 
see as the feckless, shifting (and now failed) world of liberal 
capitalism. I've met such people, in Russia and China, even in Canada, 
and they scare me. It took me too long to despise dogmatism whatever its 
face. I hope my daughter and her generation will learn faster.
What we have now makes me think of a famous passage of Maynard Keynes in 
which he describes the first age of globalisation. This was before 1914, 
when the inhabitant of London, 'sipping tea in bed', could order the 
fruits of the earth by telephone, 'adventure his wealth', contemplating 
unrestricted travel, if he was a subject of His Britannic Majesty 
indeed, without a passport. 'Most important of all,' Keynes concludes, 
'he regarded this state of affairs as normal, certain and permanent, 
except in the direction of future improvement.'
By 1919, when he wrote these words, Keynes mourned the old, open and 
liberal world, even as he knew it was gone. We've been lucky to see it 
back again, even if we do need passports. But in our day, globalisation 
proved to be a word that meant less than it promised.
There was something lopsided in the idea of a world where capital 
travelled freely, but no system of planetary governance worthy of the 
name existed. I want liberal internationalism to continue, not because 
it's synonymous with 'the end of history', or because it works terribly 
well, but because the alternatives, as Churchill remarked about 
democracy, have been tried and have all failed.
To be sure, people shouldn't have borrowed as they did, and many 
stupidly titled instruments were traded, often with fraudulent intent. 
Keynes's 'adventuring wealth' is a quaint description of what people 
were getting up to in Wall Street and the Square Mile. But I never felt 
I was living in an age in which stupidity was unusually prevalent. Was 
the world getting better or worse prior to October?
There were at least grounds for hope. This is what Obama told us, and we 
had no reason to disbelieve him. But he now faces a very different 
prospect to the one in which he campaigned. 'Sometimes, when I get up in 
the morning, I don't know where to start,' he said, in what must be the 
understatement of the year. For my daughter's generation, Obama is a 
rock star, a seer and a beau. For them, and because he is a wholly 
remarkable man, I wish him to succeed. It pains me even to think what 
would become of our hopes if anything happened to him.
I have some wishes for my daughter and her generation. The first is that 
they learn scepticism rapidly. Scepticism appears to me as the virtue of 
our times, essential if you take the prospect of survival at all 
seriously. My other wish is that they learn to enjoy things without 
always owning them. So much conspicuous wealth, recently, has made it 
seem that one must own as much as one can. Without being a Christian, I 
can see that this is a foolish idea.
It must be evident that I don't believe the world is headed for better 
things. However, I refuse to conclude, in the approved style of 
cynicism, that it's all a lottery. How we respond to bad times does 
matter, and we may somehow, given luck and the rigorous application of 
intelligence, head off the worst. These days I console myself with the 
thought that if you can't retire rich, you might as well go on 
regardless. I want to see what my daughter's generation make of the 
world. Maybe I'll learn from them.
• Nick Fraser is editor of BBC4's Storyville.






http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200812/200812150032.html

Updated Dec.15,2008 13:12 KST

What Korea Can Learn from the Greek Riots by Kim Dae-joong

Our country's actual unemployment is 3.17 million. The figure adds to 
the official jobless number those who have given up seeking jobs, are in 
the midst of the application process, or are "resting." The number 
corresponds to 12 percent of the working-age population. Employment 
increase this year dropped from 280,000 last year to 140,000 and is 
expected to decline to 40,000 next year, according to Bank of Korea 
statistics. Nearly 1 million people draw unemployment benefits.
Sixty-five percent of major businesses have yet to formulate next year's 
employment programs. A survey of 72 of the nation's 100 biggest 
corporations in terms of sales found that 65.3 percent were undecided. 
Of the remainder, 30.6 percent had plans for next year, and 4.1 percent 
do not intend to hire anyone. A recent poll by the Korea Development 
Bank of 3,600 companies found that 6.8 percent plan to cut investment in 
facilities and equipment next year, another signal that employment will 
decrease.
Unemployment is the biggest problem in an economic crisis. The number of 
people who have lost their jobs and are resting at home or being driven 
out in the streets is rising. Construction sites offering temporary or 
daily jobs have long been idle, and small businesses suffering a drastic 
drop in sales are laying off staff. The shutters are going down on Main 
Street.
Household debt will naturally rise. The BOK predicts that a sharp fall 
in asset prices will bring about a "reverse-asset effect," and that 
household real income will shrink due to price rises and falling wages. 
In short, living standards will fall markedly and even there could even 
be bread-and-butter problems.
That is what should make us look closely at the recent protests in 
Greece. The situation descended into rioting when a 15-year-old boy was 
killed by police, but it was caused by economic stagnation and youth 
unemployment, according to the local media. Greece has a growth rate of 
3 percent, the lowest among European countries, and while unemployment 
overall is 8 percent, youth unemployment is 21 percent. Various factors 
like low education quality, government corruption, absence of the rule 
of law, and widespread nepotism are driving people out into the streets. 
And opposition leaders, academics and anarchists are fanning the sense 
of grievance. The Greek riots are expanding to other European cities.
Needless to say, Korea is in many ways different from Greece. We have, 
however, the experience of the U.S. beef protests. The beef imports were 
no immediate threat to our lives, but the situation exploded when it 
fused with anti-Americanism and the arrogance of the new administration.
Now, unemployment is of a different dimension altogether. It involves 
how a family eats and survives and educates its children and whether 
they will find work. If this gets serious, nobody can predict the extent 
of public unrest and indignation. In addition, it is fully possible that 
the order of priority of the government's economic revival policy will 
prove ineffective and the opposition parties and progressives will fan 
protests.
The government cannot afford to make light of this. It must realize that 
the policies, plans, instructions and guidelines President Lee Myung-bak 
pours out everyday as if he were omnipotent ruler of the economy are 
limited to businesses' structural reform, pressuring financial 
institutions and attracting foreign exchange, while people’s actual 
lives are getting more difficult by the day. The administration's 
business revival plans are meant to increase employment eventually. A 
case in point is the mega repair project for the country’s four major 
rivers.
But in terms of priority, saving people from the ordeal of joblessness 
should have a higher priority than reviving companies or their 
structural reform. To be sure, weeding out insolvent enterprises, 
securing the safety network of the economy and asking corporations to 
cut their workforce through structural reform are important. But it is 
more important that we can feel that these are matters to be dealt with 
after the public's bread-and-butter problems have been tackled. Given 
the explosive nature of abrupt mass unemployment, we need to weigh the 
order of priority between social and economic safety networks.
The problem is not confined to the administration. Politicians need to 
do their utmost to legislate in favor of symbiosis, calling on 
businesses to reduce their scale and wages as a means of preserving 
jobs. Workers will have to cooperate with management in determining 
their wage levels. In a battle field in the crossfire of joblessness and 
economic stagnation, they should hunker down.
Let us hope that workers can weather this winter of economic stagnation 
without having to wander the streets, even if they have to put up with 
less money and a fainter voice. It is common sense to huddle together 
when the temperatures drop.






http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_politics_0_30/12/2008_103404

Universities assess riot damage
Authorities inspecting schools find that protesters have left 
substantial destruction in their wake
Universities in Athens and Thessaloniki began assessing the damage done 
to their campuses, buildings and equipment by rioters who had taken over 
the institutions for almost three weeks in December.
Following the departure of anarchists, protesters and various other 
groups that had made the universities home following the December 6 
shooting of 15-year-old Alexis Grigoropoulos by a policeman, university 
staff moved in yesterday to take stock of the damage done during the 
turmoil that followed the incident in Exarchia.
At the Athens University of Economics and Business (AUEB), there was so 
much graffiti on the walls that staff judged that the interior of the 
entire building would have to be repainted. The AUEB rector, Grigoris 
Prastakos, told Kathimerini that 14 offices had also been broken into as 
well as a work area from which computers were stolen.
At the Athens Law School, walls, windows and doors had been damaged but 
no offices had been broken into. Repair work started at the school 
yesterday.
The National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), formerly the 
Polytechnic, suffered the most damage. Marble staircases and ledges had 
been smashed with sledgehammers to provide rioters with ammunition to 
throw at the police. Doors and windows had also been destroyed. However, 
the rector of the university, Constantinos Moutzouris, said that student 
work areas and the NTUA’s library had not been damaged.
However, some teaching staff suggested that Moutzouris was downplaying 
the damage in order not to rile those who caused it. “It is time to tell 
the public the truth and for everyone to assume their responsibilities,” 
one lecturer, who preferred to remain anonymous, told Kathimerini. “The 
rector was in a tough position recently and, in this context, I 
appreciate a possible attempt to cover up the extent of the damage. But 
we have to stop operating this way now.”
In Thessaloniki, an initial estimate of the damage done to the city’s 
Aristotle University put the repairs at 150,000 euros but this figure is 
expected to rise.







http://www1.reporter.gr/default.asp?pid=16&la=2&art_aid=191014

Greece: Sprider cuts guidance as riots damage stores
12:17 - 11 December 2008
Greek clothing retailer Sprider Stores cut its guidance for 2008 
following several days of rioting, which left several of its stores 
damaged and forced others to close. The company's main store was torched 
during five days of civil unrest sparked by the police shooting of a 
teenager.
"The total destruction of the group's main store combined with lighter 
damage in several other stores in Greece as well as the closure of 
several stores for security reasons have caused a trimming of turnover", 
the company said in a filing to the stock exchange.
Sprider cut its sales forecast to EUR 155 million from EUR 165 million 
previously, with earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and 
amortisation (EBITDA) seen at EUR 32 million compared to EUR 35.6 
million previously.
Net profit is forecast to rise 10.4% year-on-year to EUR 15.6 million, 
compared to EUR 18.6 million estimated previously, the company said late 
on Wednesday.





DECEMBER 14th - DECEMBER 24th

http://www.expatica.com/nl/news/european_news/Shots-fired-as-2_000-protest-in-Athens-.html

Shots fired as 2,000 protest in Athens
At the start of the march, roughly a dozen youths toppled a police 
vehicle, with the officers inside escaping unscathed.
Athens -- Shots were fired at an anti-riot van in Athens on Tuesday and 
youths damaged a police car as some 2,000 students marched in new 
protests that have rocked the capital since police killed a teenager.
At the start of the march, roughly a dozen youths toppled a police 
vehicle, with the officers inside escaping unscathed.
Earlier in the day, shots were fired at a riot police van in the Goudi 
district of Athens, missing the 23 officers on board but hitting the 
engine. One of the van's tires also burst.
A group calling itself "Popular Action" claimed responsibility for the 
strike on Tuesday evening in an anonymous phone call to zougla.gr, the 
news website said.
Police said they found seven shells and two bullet remains from a 7.62 
caliber rifle apparently fired from inside a park that forms part of the 
Athens university campus.
Youths have targeted police stations and torched police vehicles in 
three weeks of sporadic unrest over the killing of 15-year-old Alexis 
Grigoropoulos by a police bullet.
Around 2,000 university and high school students peacefully marched on 
parliament, shouting slogans against the police and the conservative 
government, which is clinging to power by a one-seat majority in parliament.
Some protesters claimed that the death was not an accident, saying " the 
government, the cops and the state are guilty," and calling Prime 
Minister Costa Karamanlis "a fascist" and "you can't stop us."
Upon reaching parliament, a group of demonstrators set fire to a large 
paper pig's head sporting a policeman's cap and dumped it at the feet of 
riot police.
Meanwhile a group of high school students staged a separate rally in 
front of the education ministry slated to be their last before the holidays.
The students, who are expected to decide in early January whether to 
continue their protests over the teenager's death, claim they still 
occupy about 700 schools and several universities in Greece. The 
education ministry claims only about 100 are occupied.
Grigoropoulos was fatally shot on December 6 by a police officer who 
claims he fired into the air whilst under attack by a group of youths.
The boy's death unleashed a wave of anger, which initially degenerated 
into the worst rampage Greece has seen in decades with hundreds of 
stores in several cities vandalized and looted in the days following his 
death.
The violence has since largely subsided, allowing Athenians to salvage a 
narrowed-down Christmas shopping season.
But skirmishes with young protesters continue around occupied university 
buildings, which are off-limits to police under education laws dating 
from the restoration of democracy from the seven-year army junta in 1974.
Karamanlis's government was already in trouble from unpopular reforms 
and corruption scandals but the premier has vowed to stay on to help the 
country steer through the global financial crisis.
The depth of anti-government sentiment witnessed over the past fortnight 
has also cost the government dearly in opinion polls.
Socialist leader George Papandreou has overtaken Karamanlis for the 
first time as the preferred choice for prime minister, and a new survey 
by pollsters GPO on Monday said the socialists would sweep an election 
by a massive 22.4-percentage point margin over the ruling party.
John Hadoulis/AFP/Expatica





http://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/Display_news.asp?section=World_News&subsection=United+Kingdom+%26+Europe&month=December2008&file=World_News2008122485551.xml

Athens protesters attack police
Web posted at: 12/24/2008 8:55:51
Source ::: AFP

Riot police walk by a police patrol car overturned by demonstrators 
during a demonstration in central Athens yesterday.
ATHENS: Shots were fired at an anti-riot van in Athens yesterday and 
youths damaged a police car as some 2,000 students marched in new 
protests that have rocked the capital since police killed a teenager.
At the start of the march, roughly a dozen youths toppled a police 
vehicle, with the officers inside escaping unscathed.
Earlier in the day, shots were fired at a riot police van in the Goudi 
district of Athens, missing the 23 officers on board but hitting the 
engine. One of the van’s tyres also burst.
A group calling itself “Popular Action” claimed responsibility for the 
strike yesterday evening in an anonymous phone call to zougla.gr, the 
news website said.
Police said they found seven shells and two bullet remains from a 7.62 
calibre rifle apparently fired from inside a park that forms part of the 
Athens university campus.
Youths have targeted police stations and torched police vehicles in 
three weeks of sporadic unrest over the killing of 15-year-old Alexis 
Grigoropoulos by a police bullet.
Around 2,000 university and high school students peacefully marched on 
parliament, shouting slogans against the police and the conservative 
government which is clinging to power by a one-seat majority in parliament.
Some protesters claimed that the death was not an accident, saying “ the 
government, the cops and the state are guilty,” and calling Prime 
Minister Costa Karamanlis “a fascist” and “you can’t stop us.”
Upon reaching parliament, a group of demonstrators set fire to a large 
paper pig’s head sporting a policeman’s cap and dumped it at the feet of 
riot police.
Meanwhile a group of high school students staged a separate rally in 
front of the education ministry slated to be their last before the holidays.
The students, who are expected to decide in early January whether to 
continue their protests over the teenager’s death, claim they still 
occupy about 700 schools and several universities in Greece. The 
education ministry claims only about 100 are occupied.
Grigoropoulos was fatally shot on December 6 by a police officer who 
claims he fired into the air whilst under attack by a group of youths.
The boy’s death unleashed a wave of anger which initially degenerated 
into the worst rampage Greece has seen in decades with hundreds of 
stores in several cities vandalised and looted in the days following his 
death.
The violence has since largely subsided, allowing Athenians to salvage a 
narrowed-down Christmas shopping season.
But skirmishes with young protesters continue around occupied university 
buildings which are off-limits to police under education laws dating 
from the restoration of democracy from the seven-year army junta in 1974.
Karamanlis’s government was already in trouble from unpopular reforms 
and corruption scandals but the premier has vowed to stay on to help the 
country steer through the global financial crisis.
The depth of anti-government sentiment witnessed over the past fortnight 
has also cost the government dearly in opinion polls.
Socialist leader George Papandreou has overtaken Karamanlis for the 
first time as the preferred choice for prime minister, and a new survey 
by pollsters GPO on Monday said the socialists would sweep an election 
by a massive 22.4-percentage point margin over the ruling party.







http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_politics_0_24/12/2008_103301

Protests wind down for holiday pause


TATIANA BOLARI/EUROKINISSI
Riot police stand in front of a patrol car overturned by demonstrators 
during a protest march in central Athens yesterday. Youths have been 
protesting the police killing of 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos 
for more than two weeks. Outbursts of violence, though not as intense as 
the initial wave of riots, have been regular. Yesterday’s rallies were 
mostly peaceful, as protestors wind down for the Christmas break. Fresh 
rallies are already planned for January.
Several thousand people staged what is likely to be the last major 
street protest before Christmas yesterday as leftist students and 
self-styled anarchists occupying university facililties started heading 
home for a holiday truce.
More than 3,000 demonstrators joined a march organized by leftist groups 
through the city center, a continuation of more than two weeks of 
protests at the police killing of 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos 
in Exarchia. The rally, which started outside the main entrance to 
Athens University and culminated in Syntagma Square, was mostly 
peaceful. One group of youths broke away from protesters at one point to 
overturn a police patrol car, but there were no reports of any injuries. 
Another group of protesters burned a model of a pig’s head wearing a 
police cap in front of riot officers.
Schoolchildren, protesting Grigoropoulos’s death and education 
standards, also staged a peaceful demonstration outside the Education 
Ministry, singing Christmas carols. They said they would continue their 
protests in the new year.
Leftists have scheduled another protest rally at the newly renovated 
Monastiraki Square at 4 p.m. today and more for January.
Meanwhile, hundreds of self-professed anarchists who have been squatting 
in university buildings over the past two weeks were reportedly packing 
their bags. According to sources, the premises of the National Technical 
University of Athens and the Athens University law school were slowly 
emptying.
University rectors were due to start taking stock today of the damage 
wreaked during the sit-ins. Sources said windows had been smashed and 
chunks had been hacked out of marble staircases and floors for use as 
missiles against riot police.






http://news.iafrica.com/worldnews/1403944.htm

2000 protest in Athens
Wed, 24 Dec 2008 07:28
Shots were fired at an anti-riot van in Athens on Tuesday and youths 
damaged a police car as some 2000 students marched in new protests that 
have rocked the capital since police killed a teenager.
At the start of the march, roughly a dozen youths toppled a police 
vehicle, with the officers inside escaping unscathed.
Earlier in the day, shots were fired at a riot police van in the Goudi 
district of Athens, missing the 23 police on board but hitting the 
engine. One of the van's tyres also burst.
The police found two bullet remains from a 7.62 calibre rifle apparently 
fired from inside a park that forms part of the Athens university campus.
Youths have targeted police stations and torched police vehicles in 
three weeks of sporadic unrest over the death of 15-year-old Alexis 
Grigoropoulos.
Around 2000 university and high school students peacefully marched on 
parliament, shouting slogans against the police and the conservative 
government which is clinging to power by a one-seat majority in parliament.
"This bullet did not come by accident, the government, the cops and the 
state are guilty, (Prime Minister Costas) Karamanlis, you fascist, you 
can't stop us," the protesters said of the teenager's killing.
Upon reaching parliament, a group of demonstrators set fire to a large 
paper pig's head sporting a policeman's cap and dumped it at the feet of 
riot police.
Meanwhile, a group of high-school students staged a separate rally in 
front of the education ministry slated to be their last before the holidays.
The students — who are expected to decide in early January whether or 
not to pursue their protests over the teenager's death — claim they 
continue to occupy about 700 schools and several universities in Greece. 
The education ministry claims only about 100 are occupied.
The worst rampage Greece has seen in decades
Grigoropoulos was fatally shot on 6 December by a police officer who 
claims he fired into the air whilst under attack by a group of youths.
The boy's death unleashed a wave of youth anger which initially 
degenerated into the worst rampage Greece has seen in decades with 
hundreds of stores in several cities vandalised and looted in the days 
following his death.
The violence has since largely subsided, allowing Athenians to salvage a 
narrowed-down Christmas shopping season.
But skirmishes with young protesters continue around occupied university 
buildings which are off-limits to police under education laws dating 
from the restoration of democracy from the seven-year army junta in 1974.
Karamanlis's government was already in trouble from unpopular reforms 
and corruption scandals but he has vowed to stay on to help the country 
steer through the global financial slowdown.
The depth of anti-government sentiment witnessed over the past fortnight 
has also cost the government dearly in opinion polls.
Socialist leader George Papandreou has overtaken Karamanlis for the 
first time as the preferred choice for prime minister, and a new survey 
by pollsters GPO on Monday said the socialists would sweep an election 
by a massive 22.4-percentage point margin over the ruling party.
AFP






http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24831076-2703,00.html

Greek protesters hurl firebombs and garbage
Correspondents in Athens | December 22, 2008
Article from: The Australian
CLASHES between youths and police continued yesterday in the Athens 
district where a teenager was killed by officers two weeks ago, sparking 
nationwide unrest.
Hundreds of people gathered around the Exarchia district, the site of 
the December 6 shooting of Alexis Grigoropoulos, 15, for a protest 
organised by youths occupying Athens Polytechnic.
Protesters hurled firebombs at police, who responded with teargas. A 
group threw stones and Molotov cocktails at police and set fire to 
garbage bins.
Police also clashed with protesters after a separate demonstration 
against racism that was attended by about 200 people in Syntagma Square.
"Migrants are killed, schoolchildren are killed," said banners carried 
by the protesters who marched to the Greek parliament. Protesters threw 
garbage at police who ringed a Christmas tree on the main square.
Police cleared the square to guard the tree after about 150 youths hung 
garbage from itsbranches. The tree was brought in last week after the 
original was torched at the height of the unrest. The new tree survived 
the attack but at least three news photographers were injured by police 
batons.
Masked men broke into the building housing the offices of Tiresias SA, a 
company that keeps records of delinquent debtors and cardholders, and 
firebombed the company's offices. The fire was extinguished but the 
company's offices were destroyed, witnesses said.
In Nea Philadelfia, a western suburb of Athens, demonstrators threw 
Molotov cocktails at the police academy and torched six police vehicles 
parked nearby, without causing any casualties, police said.
In Thessaloniki, anarchists occupied a cinema in the city's main square 
and threw cakes andsweets at Mayor Vassilis Papageorgopoulos and one of 
hisdeputies.
The mayor was attending an open-air Christmas event near the theatre, 
distributing the sweets to children with sickle-cell anaemia when the 
rioters disrupted the event. Protesters emerged from the theatre and 
attacked a nativity scene, throwing away the Christ figure.
Masked youths attacked the French cultural institute in Athens after 
about 1000 students and communist activists staged a march to condemn a 
second shooting on Wednesday in which the son of a teacher's union 
official was slightly wounded.
Protesters demanding justice over Grigoropoulos's death continue to 
occupy hundreds of schools and many universities across Greece.
The Athens Polytechnic, site of a 1973 student uprising that hastened 
the fall of military dictatorship in Greece, is among the occupied campuses.
Meanwhile, German police arrested 10 people and suffered four injuries 
in fighting with demonstrators staging a rally inHamburg in support of 
the Greek protests on Saturday, officials said.
Police said some of the Hamburg demonstrators wore face masks and threw 
bottles andburning missiles at the police, two of whom needed hospital 
treatment.
Greece's conservative Government is under fire over the unrest, with 
unions putting extra pressure on the Government ahead of a parliamentary 
vote on the budget.
Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis has shrugged off calls to resign. Last 
week, he announced financial measures to support the business and 
tourism sectors hard-hit by the unrest.
Hundreds of shops and banks in Athens and elsewhere have sustained 
damage in street violence. With trading gradually resuming, rumours are 
rife in the Greek media that Mr Karamanlis will reshuffle his 
Government, which relies on a fragile single-seat majority in the 
300-deputy parliament.
AFP, AP






http://www.euronews.net/2008/12/23/gunfire-and-protests-in-athens/

Greece
world news
The following article has been retrieved from the archive and no longer 
contains the original video.
Protests continued in Athens just hours after a police van was hit by 
gunfire. Thousands of people marched through the city in a demonstration 
that was largely peaceful. In the earlier incident, shots were fired at 
a police van when it stopped at traffic lights outside a university 
campus in eastern Athens. Two bullets hit the van, bursting a tyre, but 
no-one was injured.
The university has become the centre of anti-government protests in 
Greece that have now run into a third week. The fatal shooting of a 
teenager at the beginning of December unleashed widespread unrest. Many 
protestors are angry at high youth unemployment, government scandals, 
and unpopular economic reforms.






http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/0,1518,597899,00.html#ref=rss

Protest actions, some violent, also continued to bring chaos to the 
streets of Athens over the weekend as police battled riots and 
lawlessness sparked by the Dec. 6 police killingof 15-year-old 
Alexandros Grigoropoulos.
On Saturday, a memorial service to the slain boy turned violent and led 
to scattered groups of masked youths showering police with rocks and 
Molotov cocktails and igniting at least six police vehicles and numerous 
garbage containers. As black smoke lofted above the skyline of the vast 
city, heavily armed police broke up crowds of protesters with tear gas.
Other incidents Saturday included the fire-bombing and destruction of a 
credit-reporting agency and clashes around the 18-meter-high (60-foot) 
Christmas tree in Syntagma Square between police and protesters trying 
to hang trash bags from its branches. The original tree was burned down 
by protesters on Dec. 8, the third day of riots, and replaced soon 
thereafter.
Although the protests were initially meant as a response to perceived 
police violence, they have developed into a wider protests against 
political corruption and diminished job prospects triggered by the 
current economic crisis.
A Search for 'Solidarity'
On Sunday, the protest actions in Athens also spread to include foreign 
institutions. An estimated 30 masked individuals attacked the French 
Institute in Athens' upscale Kolonaki district, smashing windows and 
throwing a Molotov cocktail at guards stationed at its entrance, 
according to the Athens daily Kathimerini.
NEWSLETTER
Sign up for Spiegel Online's daily newsletter and get the best of Der 
Spiegel's and Spiegel Online's international coverage in your In- Box 
everyday.

The paper speculated that the attacks might have been motivated by 
protesters' hoping to forge links between student protesters in France 
and the unrest in Greece. In support of this theory, the paper cited 
graffiti found near the French Institute reading: "Spark in Athens. Fire 
in Paris. Insurrection is coming" and "France, Greece, uprising everywhere."
Also on Sunday, more than 1,500 people gathered for a peaceful protest 
in support of a 16-year-old boy who was shot in the hand last Wednesday 
under mysterious circumstances, according to Kathimerini. While police 
statements had originally claimed that the boy had been hit by an 
air-gun pellet, recently released tests confirm that the boy was hit by 
a 38 milimeter gun from a distance.
Though the Greek government has expressed its hope that the 
demonstrations and violent outburts would die down because of protest 
fatigue and the holiday season, labor leaders and student groups have 
pledged to continue their actions into the New Year.
jtw -- with wire reports






http://www.tradearabia.com/news/newsdetails.asp?Sn=INTNEWS&artid=153813

Greek demonstrators call for EU-wide protest
Athens: Wed, 17 Dec 2008

Protesters hung banners from the Acropolis in Greece on Wednesday 
calling for demonstrations across Europe, in the twelfth day of protests 
since police shot dead a teenager.
'Resistance' read one of the two pink banners in Greek, German, Spanish, 
and English, which protesters unfurled from the stone wall of the 
ancient hilltop citadel in Athens. 'Thursday 18/12 demonstrations in all 
Europe,' said another.
Greece's worst protests in decades, sparked by the shooting of 
15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos, have fed on simmering anger at 
youth unemployment and the world economic crisis.
'We chose this monument to democracy, this global monument, to proclaim 
our resistance to state violence and demand rights in education and 
work,' one protester, who declined to give his name, told Reuters 
Television. '(We did it) to send a message globally and to all Europe.'
The demonstrations have sparked sympathy protests from Moscow to Madrid 
and European policymakers, including French President Nicolas Sarkozy, 
have expressed concern they might spread as the downturn bites and 
unemployment rises.
Protesters demanding the release of people arrested during the riots 
occupied the headquarters of the GSEE private sector union federation 
and hung anti-government banners from the building.
The ADEDY public sector workers federation has called a three-hour work 
stoppage on Thursday against government policy and the teenager's 
killing, and rallies are planned for Friday.
Thursday's stoppage will ground all but emergency flights into Greece 
between 1000 and 1300 GMT, air traffic controllers said, and disrupt 
urban public transport services.
Hundreds of shops and cars were wrecked in 10 Greek cities during last 
week's violence. The National Confederation of Commerce estimates 565 
shops were damaged in Athens alone, costing 200 million euros and 
causing more than 1 billion in lost sales during the Christmas shopping 
period.
The protests have rocked the conservative government, which has a one 
seat majority and trails in opinion polls. They have driven Greek bond 
spreads -- a measure of perceived investment risk -- to record levels 
above German benchmark bonds.
As the intensity of the protests has cooled this week, students have 
begun to stage sit-ins. About 20 students occupied state TV on Tuesday, 
interrupting a news broadcast to briefly hold up banners reading 
'Against State Violence.'
Scores of schools and university buildings, some of them badly damaged, 
remain occupied by students. The policeman who shot Grigoropoulos has 
been charged with murder and jailed pending trial, while his partner was 
charged as an accomplice.
The policeman says he fired a warning shot in self-defense against a 
group of youths in the volatile Exarchia neighborhood, but the family's 
lawyer says he aimed to kill without significant provocation.-Reuters







http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/dec/21/greece-protests-athens-violence

Violence continues in Greece as rioters firebomb buildings
Protesters in Athens torch offices and cars amid clashes with police 
after memorial for teenager
• Buzz up!
• Digg it
• Anil Dawar
• guardian.co.uk, Sunday 21 December 2008 17.05 GMT
• Article history

A youth assaults a police officer in Athens during a week of riots after 
the shooting of a teenager. Photograph: Bela Szandelszky/AP
Violent protests continued in Greece last night as hundreds of rioters 
fought running battles with police in central Athens and firebombed the 
offices of a credit checking agency.
The violence erupted following a memorial gathering at the spot where 
15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos died on 6 December after being shot 
by a policeman.
The rioters, using the National Technical University of Athens as a 
base, launched attacks against police, throwing rocks and petrol bombs 
and erecting roadblocks. Police responded with volleys of tear gas.
Greek law prevents security forces from entering the university grounds 
unless the school's administration gives the go-ahead. So far no 
permission has been given.
Grigoropoulos's shooting touched a nerve among Greek youths, who took to 
the streets to protest at what they see as random police violence.
The protests, which are now running into their third week, have been 
fanned by perceptions of corruption among politicians and poor job 
prospects as the economy takes a turn for the worse.
Yesterday's clashes dashed the hopes of the government and police that 
protest fatigue would set in, as Christmas neared.
During the evening an office block housing Tiresias SA, a credit 
checking agency, was targeted by arsonists and destroyed. Two cars were 
also torched.
Earlier about 150 youths defaced central Athens's Christmas tree, 
hanging bin liners from its branches, before clashing with riot police. 
The square was cleared within two hours. The tree, which was a 
replacement for the one burned down two weeks ago, survived the attack 
after riot police with shields formed a circle round it while protesters 
danced around them holding hands.
In Thessaloniki a group of self-styled anarchists briefly occupied a 
radio station and a cinema before disrupting an open-air charity event 
attended by the city's mayor.
The protests have caused hundreds of millions of euros damage, rocking a 
conservative government that has a one-seat majority and trails the 
opposition in the polls. Some analysts say continued street protests 
could force early elections. Unions and students have organised more 
protest rallies for the new year.
The policeman accused of shooting Alexandros Grigoropoulos has been 
charged with murder.
The Greek prime minister, Costas Karamanlis has rejected calls to step 
down, despite growing public pressure. But he has acknowledged that 
"long-unresolved problems, such as the lack of meritocracy, corruption 
in everyday life and a sense of social injustice" are fuelling the anger 
of young people.
Ripples from the Greek protests were felt in Germany, where about 1,000 
people turned out for a demonstration in Hamburg. Four people were 
injured and nine arrested after bottles were thrown at police.
A further demonstration by about 250 people near the Greek consulate 
passed without incident, a police statement said.






http://www.voanews.com/english/archive/2008-12/2008-12-20-voa17.cfm?CFID=253676143&CFTOKEN=32174791&jsessionid=0030e3ae8a52f0498743584414e1b414e7c2

Clashes Between Greek Rioters, Police Enter Third Week
By VOA News
21 December 2008

Protesters peacefully dance in a circle around police officers, some in 
riot gear, protecting the Christmas tree during a protest in central 
Athens' Syntagma Square, Greece, 20 Dec 2008
Clashes between Greek youths and police in Athens continued well into 
the night Saturday, dashing hopes that two weeks of rioting would 
subside as Christmas neared.

Hundreds of people gathered for a memorial in Exarchia district near the 
capital city's center where police fatally shot a teenager, Alexandros 
Grigoropoulos, two weeks ago.

Protesters set fire to more buildings and cars and hurled firebombs at 
police who responded with tear gas.

Earlier in the day, rioters attacked a Christmas tree in the central 
Syntagma Square with garbage. The square's first Christmas tree was 
burned to the ground days after the shooting of the teenager.

In the northern city of Salonika, protesters occupied a movie theater in 
the city's main square and pelted the mayor with pastries.

Rage over the killing set off Greece's worst unrest in decades and 
turned into anger over corruption and economic hardship.

Greek media describe the protesters as self-styled anarchists and youths 
belonging to far-left militant groups.

Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis says the protests have damaged the 
country's economy, with retailers reporting more than a billion dollars 
in damages and lost sales.

Meanwhile, protests are spreading beyond Greece's borders. In the 
northern German city of Hamburg, about one thousand demonstrators 
marched through the streets Saturday in support of the Greek protests.

Local officials said protesters threw bottles, iron bars and fireworks 
at police who arrested several people.






http://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/Display_news.asp?section=World_News&subsection=United+Kingdom+%26+Europe&month=December2008&file=World_News2008122185947.xml

Youth hurl garbage at Greek riot police
Web posted at: 12/21/2008 8:59:47
Source ::: AFP
ATHENS: Protesters hurled garbage at riot police yesterday as the Greek 
capital saw another day of protests, two weeks after the fatal police 
killing of a teenager set off nationwide unrest.
The police were targetted as they ringed a Christmas tree on the main 
Syntagma Square which has been a focus of demonstrations since the 
shooting of 15-year-old Alexis Grigoropoulos on December 6. The tree was 
brought in last week after the original was torched at the height of 
unrest following the schoolboy’s death. The trouble came on the fringe 
of an anti-racist demonstration by about 200 people in the capital. 
“Migrants are killed, schoolchildren are killed,” said banners carried 
by the protesters who marched to the Greek parliaments. The march 
follows daily protests in Athens and other Greek cities over 
Grigoropoulos’ death that have often become violent.
In the northern city of Thessaloniki, youths occupied a hall being used 
for a film festival while others pelted the city mayor with pastries, 
police said.
Masked youths Friday attacked the French cultural institute in Athens 
after about 1,000 students and communist activists staged a march to 
condemn a second shooting on Wednesday in which the son of a teacher’s 
union official was slightly wounded.
Protesters demanding justice over Grigoropoulos’ death continue to 
occupy hundreds of schools and many universities across Greece. The 
Athens Polytechnic, site of a 1973 student uprising that hastened the 
fall of military dictatorship in Greece, is among the occupied campuses. 
Athens Polytechnic students were to gather on the street corner in the 
Exarchia district, where Grigoropoulos was hit by a police bullet two 
weeks ago. The conservative government is under fire over the unrest, 
with unions putting extra pressure on the government ahead of a 
parliamentary vote Sunday on the budget. Prime Minister Costas 
Karamanlis is shrugging off opposition calls to resign. Last week he 
announced financial measures to support the business and tourism sectors 
hard-hit by the unrest.
Hundreds of shops and banks in Athens and elsewhere have sustained 
damage in street violence. With trading gradually resuming, rumours are 
rife in the Greek media that Karamanlis will reshuffle his government 
which relies on a fragile single-seat majority in the 300-deputy parliament






http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/greek-rioters-throw-petrol-bombs-and-stones-at-police-1203703.html

Greek rioters throw petrol bombs and stones at police
Friday, 19 December 2008
Protesters hurled firebombs and stones at police outside parliament 
yesterday, and unions grounded flights and closed public offices in the 
13th consecutive day of anti-government violence since police shot dead 
a teenager.
Crowds waving red flags jostled with police cordoning parliament, and 
tried to burn a Christmas tree in the square outside. Police fired 
teargas to disperse them.
"Down with the government of blood, poverty and privatisations," read 
one of the banners carried by some 7,000 marchers in protests against 
social and economic reforms and the government's failure to shelter 
Greeks from the global economic crisis which were unleashed by the 
teenager's killing.
Unions, students and teachers also staged rallies in the northern city 
of Thessaloniki and on Crete. Greece's worst protests in decades, which 
followed the shooting of 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos, fed off 
anger at the economic slowdown and rising youth unemployment.
The officer who shot the boy is in jail charged with murder and his 
partner is charged as an accomplice. On Wednesday, a 16-year-old boy was 
shot in the hand. Police denied opening fire.






http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/7783375.stm

Monday, 15 December 2008
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Athens hit by new protest rallies
Protesters outside Athens' police headquarters
Hundreds of people are staging fresh protest rallies in Athens, after 
days of rioting sparked by the killing of a teenager by police in Greece.
They gathered near the capital's police headquarters and the main court, 
where some of the protesters arrested last week were to appear before 
magistrates.
The policeman accused of shooting Alexandros Grigoropoulos, aged 15, has 
been charged with murder.
The shooting has also generated widespread anti-government sentiment,
Sixty per cent of those questioned by Greece's Kathimerini newspaper 
rejected the assertion that the disturbances have been merely a series 
of co-ordinated attacks by a small hard core of anarchists.

It [the government] is wasting away, collapsing and dissolving into a 
dead-end

George Papandreou
opposition Pasok party
Another poll, in the Ethnos newspaper, suggested that 83% of Greeks were 
unhappy with the government's response to the violence. Kathimerini put 
the disapproval rating at 68%.
The BBC's Malcolm Brabant in Athens says the results appear to confirm 
what many commentators have been saying - that conservative Prime 
Minister Kostas Karamanlis has pulled off the unique feat of alienating 
all sections of Greek society.
Mr Karamanlis - who is on Monday attending the funeral of former Cypriot 
President Tassos Papadopoulos - has rejected calls to step down.
He said the country needed a "steady hand" to deal with the economic 
downturn, "not scenarios about elections and successions".
Economy fears
The new street protests are being held amid a heavy police presence.

At least 70 people have been injured in the protests sparked by the shooting
Demonstrators are chanting anti-government slogans, but no major 
incidents have been reported so far.
Further protests are planned later on Monday outside parliament.
They come after calm was briefly restored in the capital on Sunday.
In all, some 70 people are said to have been injured in violent protests 
across Greece during the unrest sparked by the shooting on 6 December.
On Sunday, the leader of the opposition Panhellenic Socialist Movement 
(Pasok) demanded elections and said the government "ignores the calls of 
society, is incapable of steadily driving the country towards change, 
and is afraid of the people."
"It is wasting away, collapsing and dissolving into a dead-end... Its 
political time is finished," George Papandreou told a party meeting.
A top union official meanwhile warned that with around a quarter of the 
young age group involved in the disturbances being unemployed, the 
unrest could grow in the coming months as more people lose their jobs.
"A massive wave of redundancies will kick in come the New Year when, 
according to our estimates, 100,000 jobs will be lost, which represents 
an additional 5% on the unemployment rate," said Stathis Anestis of the 
General Confederation of Greek Workers.






http://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/Display_news.asp?section=World_News&subsection=United+Kingdom+%26+Europe&month=December2008&file=World_News200812158292.xml

Greek government slammed over riot handling
Web posted at: 12/15/2008 8:29:2
Source ::: REUTERS
ATHENS: A week of violence in Greece has taken its toll on the fragile 
conservative government, with opinion polls showing yesterday many think 
authorities mishandled the worst rioting in decades. The December 6 
killing of a 15-year-old boy by police unleashed a wave of unrest by 
thousands of students and anarchists across the country, feeding on 
growing anger over political scandals and the impact of a global 
recession on Greece’s economy.
While the violence has generally subsided in the past few days, small 
groups of hooded youngsters hurling fire bombs are still rampaging at 
night in the capital, fighting running battles with riot police and 
smashing shops.
Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis has pledged to ensure security, 
rebuffing calls for early elections, but he has drawn widespread 
criticism for not acting quickly and decisively to tackle the revolt. An 
opinion poll published by Ethnos newspaper yesterday said 83.3 percent 
of Greeks were unhappy with the government’s response to the violence.
Discontent was high—65.6 percent—even among supporters of Karamanlis’ 
New Democracy party, which has a one-seat majority in parliament. 
Another survey, in Kathimerini daily, put disapproval of the government 
at 68 percent with 60 percent of those polled saying the riots were a 
social uprising rather than an isolated outburst by a small fringe of 
violent protesters.
Eight days of clashes have caused ¤200m ($265.3m) of damage in Athens 
alone. The city was calm yesterday but broken shop windows bore witness 
to the latest, sporadic riots overnight, when a few hundred youths 
wearing gas masks attacked a government building, four shops and two 
banks. “I’m tired of coming to the shop every night to check the 
damages. You think it’s going to calm down and then it starts again,” 
said Anna Pavlidou, manager of a central Athens mobile phone store that 
has been repeatedly attacked and looted.
“The government should assume its responsibilities and resign. It didn’t 
handle it well. If it had, we wouldn’t have 355 damaged shops in Athens. 
I mean we won’t be able to open until Christmas,” she said. “Someone has 
to understand the deeper reasons for this — poverty, high unemployment — 
and solve it radically.”
Rocked by a series of corruption scandals, Karamanlis has appealed for 
calm and vowed to protect people and property.
A policeman charged with killing Alexandros Grigoropoulos has been 
jailed along with a colleague pending trial, while more than 400 
protesters have been detained over the unrest. In central Athens, where 
even in calmer times barely a week goes by without a demonstration, riot 
police are manning street corners at night, especially in the leftist 
Exarchia neighbourhood where the teenager was shot.
But in a country where many have an instinctive disregard for authority 
and memories are still vivid of police heavy-handedness during the 
1967-74 military rule, the government has taken no emergency security 
measures.
Nor has it tried to address protesters’ deeper grievances about the 
slowing economy and political incompetence. “The government reacted 
nervously to the killing. It was already in a very difficult position 
before the riots and this situation can only make things worse,” said 
Kostas Ifantis, head of the Hellenic centre for European Studies.






http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,24798063-5006003,00.html?from=public_rss

Police, banks, gyms firebombed as Greek riots escalate
Article from: Agence France-Presse
• Font size: Decrease Increase
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• Print article: Print
 From correspondents in Athens
December 14, 2008 04:20pm
• Police station, banks, gym firebombed
• Eighth day of riots after police shoot 15-year-old
• Thousands of protestors march across Greece
GREEK protesters unleashed a wave of violence in Athens Saturday night, 
led by the firebombing of an Athens police station moments after silent 
vigils for a teenager killed one week ago wound down.
Around 100 hooded youths firebombed a station next to the Exarchia 
district where 15-year-old Alexis Grigoropoulos died from a police 
bullet last Saturday night, with tear gas being fired in reply and 
officers in pursuit as the gang fled into dimly lit side streets.
At about the same time, similar numbers in Thessaloniki, Greece's second 
city, vandalised a gymnasium before holing up behind university walls, 
beyond the reach of law enforcement.
Shortly afterwards, a police source also reported Molotov cocktails 
being hurled at three banks, igniting fires, near the Athens Polytechnic 
from where self-styled anarchist leaders say they are planning a 
sustained campaign.
Ministry of Environment premises and public property were also targeted 
under the Athens full moon, with bins set ablaze across the area, police 
added.
The fresh outbreak of hostilities followed largely silent ceremonies 
marking the moment Grigoropoulos was killed, and signalled that 
disaffected protesters may be in it for the long haul.
Greece has been gripped over the past eight days by a deep-rooted 
protest movement which has succeeded in uniting mainstream and radical 
youth and that the opposition socialists are seizing upon to press for 
fresh elections.
The lull during peaceful rallies led by several hundred mourners holding 
lit candles and posting messages on a wall by the spot where the boy 
fell, had followed overnight attacks on banks and more tense stand-offs 
with police.
Some 2,000 demonstrators -- mainly Polytechnic students -- had earlier 
squared up to police outside the Greek parliament on the eighth day of 
their dogged challenge to state authorities.
Police had blocked off the central Syntagma Square on Saturday afternoon 
after an initial sit-down protest by around 300 pupils from the school 
attended by Grigoropoulos.
With riot police staying well back at this stage, demonstrators held 
aloft a large banner at the rear bearing the inscription: ``06/12/08, 
Alexis Grigoropoulos, I won't forget''.
Student pamphlets also announced rallies planned in front of the Athens 
police headquarters on Monday and back at parliament square on Thursday, 
when school pupils and teachers are expected to support the protests.
About 2,000 youths also marched peacefully in Greece's second city, 
Thessaloniki, on Saturday afternoon, while later some 300 gathered in 
silence around the city's White Tower monument.
Meanwhile, police had already identified five banks attacked using gas 
canisters in Athens overnight Friday -- underlining the link between the 
crisis here and broader economic malaise.
The deeply held anger which has emerged within the lower end of the 
15-24 age group, one quarter of whom nationally remain unemployed, could 
fester for months, if past Greek unrest is taken as a guide.
Saturday's protests come after Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis 
dismissed opposition calls to quit while attending an EU summit in Brussels.
"At this time the country faces a serious financial crisis... a steady 
hand on the helm is needed to deal with it,'' Karamanlis said.
"That is my concern, that is the priority of the government, not 
scenarios about elections and successions.
"The compassion with which all of us ought to treat the distress of 
young people cannot be confused with blind violence, with the activities 
of extreme elements.''
The offices of lawyer Alexis Kougias, representing two policemen charged 
over Grigoropoulos's death, have already been trashed, while elsewhere 
in Europe, demonstrators have blocked traffic on the Champs-Elysees in 
Paris with hundreds marching in Berlin to show solidarity.
The officer who shot Grigoropoulos says he killed the boy by accident 
out of self defence due to a bullet ricochet.
A ballistics report, said to confirm that the handgun was not pointed at 
him, has yet to be released.





Sunday DECEMBER 14

http://www.chinapost.com.tw/international/europe/2008/12/14/187548/Greek-protests.htm

Updated Sunday, December 14, 2008 9:19 am TWN, By Demetris Nellas, AP
Greek protests still going strong after a week
ATHENS, Greece -- A week after the police killing of a 15-year-old boy 
sparked riots across Greece, young protesters on Saturday promised to 
remain on the streets until their concerns are addressed.
Several dozen students took part in a peaceful sit-down demonstration in 
Athens’ central Syntagma Square. More demonstrations are scheduled later 
in the day, including a vigil at the place and time that 15-year-old 
Alexandros Grigoropoulos was fatally shot by a police officer a week ago.
“We want to see the policemen (involved in the shooting) punished and 
the police disarmed,” said a 16-year-old student who gave her first name 
as Veatriki.
Grigoropoulos’ death has sparked daily demonstrations that have turned 
violent, leaving hundreds of stores smashed and looted. At least 70 
people have been injured and more than 200 arrested.
Besides their anger at the police, young people talk about the 
deteriorating conditions in their schools.
“We feel that our parents, our teachers do not listen to us. ... Schools 
are not a place where real learning takes place, it is just a 
preparation for the university entrance exams,” Veatriki said.
“We are entering a long period of economic crisis,” said Giorgos 
Kyrtsos, publisher of the City Press and Free Sunday newspapers. “But 
there is also a deepening social crisis, combined with a weakened state. 
We are truly at a crossroads.”
Kyrtsos, a conservative, was highly critical of the government’s 
handling of the incidents.
“This is the only government I remember that has managed to alienate 
both the rebellious youth and the law-and-order crowd. It has nothing to 
offer to anybody,” he said.
While most of the protesters have been peaceful, the tone has been set 
by a violent fringe. And more young people have been willing to join 
them than in the past.
“Young people my age feel that their voice is being heard, immediately, 
when they smash a shop window or a car,” said Veatriki.
Kyrtsos said that the hard-core anarchists “number about 500 and 
certainly less than 1,000. They are joined by an anti-social element, 
many of them soccer hooligans and by many young people who seek 
excitement but also feel a diffuse sense of frustration and of not being 
listened to.”
At the site where Grigoropoulos was shot, scores of people came to leave 
flowers and pin messages to a notice board. A privately made street sign 
bearing the teenager’s name was placed on the corner of the block.
Christmas shoppers cautiously returned to central Athens Saturday, but 
many shops boarded up their windows instead of replacing glass for fear 
of further violence.






http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/12/415754.html

SENSORED from the YOUTUBE .. Athens .. clash with POLICE
gar | 18.12.2008 20:16 | Social Struggles | World
SENSORED from the YOUTUBE .. Athens .. clash with POLICE

SENSORED from the YOUTUBE .. Athens .. clash with POLICE
http://garizo.blogspot.com/2008/12/sensored-from-youtube-athens-clash-of.html 


is not from the down town Athens events , but is characteristic of the 
Greek Police violence
gar







Homepage: 
http://garizo.blogspot.com/2008/12/sensored-from-youtube-athens-clash-of.html 

• Download this article in pdf format
• Email this article to someone;
• Submit an addition or make a quick comment on this article
Comments
Hide the following 2 comments
it's from a football game
18.12.2008 20:38
This video is from a football game, the day after the murder. It is the 
same game that the minister of education attended (yes, the next of the 
murder, on the night of the murder he was having fun at a club with live 
music). Apparently some men of the riot squad were found unguarded and 
got this beating. The voices on the video are coming from the people 
watching the beating and mean "he was a 15 year old kid, you cunts" etc.
dim








http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_world/view/396202/1/.html

Athens shopkeepers resume Christmas sales after protests
Posted: 14 December 2008 1145 hrs

Riot police are attacked with petrol bombs during a night of protests in 
central Athens

ATHENS: Shopkeepers in Athens are getting back to business for the busy 
Christmas season after a week of violent protests against the death of a 
teenager by a police bullet.

A group of young people look on as the eighty-something Nikos 
Papadopoulos opens up his optician's shop in the centre of Athens, a 
family-run store that has been a fixture for over 50 years.

"They won't break anything" he says. "We've become experts. When I saw 
the tension escalating, I shut up shop."

His store was spared Monday evening after the protests in central Athens 
degenerated into vandalism and looting.

Greece has been gripped over the past eight days by a deep-rooted 
protest movement which has succeeded in uniting mainstream and radical 
youth and that the opposition socialists are seizing upon to press for 
fresh elections.

The sweeping protests were sparked by the death of 15-year-old Alexis 
Grigoropoulos who fell victim to a police bullet last Saturday.

"Business goes on, even if for the moment, the clients are few and far 
between. The sales from this year's Christmas holidays will definitely 
not be that impressive," the octogenarian adds glumly.

Further up the street, a number of shops are boarded up. In front of his 
clothes store, 60-year-old Evangelos Papayorgiou sweeps up pieces of 
broken glass as workers replace the front windows.

"We struggled to find a team of window-fitters, but we will be ready 
soon, and when we have time, we could even attach some metal shutters," 
he says.

"There will be more protests," said Yannis Saitinis, as he washes the 
window of his shoe shop. "But the real problem is the economic crisis. 
That's what has been putting off customers."

Ermou Street is normally on the most bustling, upmarket shopping streets 
in Athens, yet since the violence of the past week, the pavements have 
been taken over by curious onlookers and African street sellers, holding 
bags stuffed with counterfeit branded goods.

"We sell good things and very cheap," sayas a young Senegalese man.

Dimitra Naka, a 24-year-old cashier in an organic food store, vents her 
spleen, railing against the government.

"If I was braver, I would be in the streets as well," she says. "But I 
would be smashing up the ministers' offices, not shops."

Nikos Mainaris, 30, runs a t-shirt store on the same street and hopes 
that "the government falls".

Panayotis Hadztheodorou, 33, runs a bar and bookshop in Athens, which 
was damaged in the violence. He estimates the repairs will cost around 
20,000 euros (26,780 dollars) and has little love for the rioters.

"Fortunately, I have run a construction business, so I've got some 
workers on the job ...

"But this time, I would advise that no one comes around here acting 
funny. I won't let them get away with it," Panayotis said.

- AFP/yt








http://www.breakingnews.ie/world/mhsnaueyeyql/rss2/

Youths go on attack as Greece clashes continue
Print Email+ Share+

14/12/2008 - 10:00:30
Rioting youths in the Greek capital attacked a police station, stores 
and banks and fought running battles with officers as violence continued 
through the night.

The violent protests sparked by the police killing of a 15-year-old boy 
broke out as candlelit vigils were being held to mark a week since the 
shooting of Alexandros Grigoropoulos.

At 11pm yesterday, police suddenly charged the peaceful candlelight 
vigil in Syntagma Square in central Athens, when the crowd of several 
hundred people refused to leave its position near
parliament. The protesters retreated, but the tense confrontation continued.

Youths – some on foot, others riding motorcycles – attacked a police 
station with petrol bombs as well as at least three banks, several 
stores and a government building, police said.

Several hundred protesters set up burning barricades and attacked police 
with rocks and flares.

Riot police fired tear gas and chased the youths through parts of the 
city. The protesters chanted

“Murderers out” and used laser pointers to target police for attack.

Violence has wracked Greece every day since the death of Grigoropoulos. 
The riots in cities throughout the country have left at least 70 people 
injured. Hundreds of stores have been smashed and looted and more than 
200 people have been arrested.

While most of the protesters have been peaceful, the tone of the 
demonstrations has been set by a violent fringe, with more young people 
willing to join those fringe elements than in the past.

Hundreds of schoolchildren holding candles gathered peacefully yesterday 
outside parliament and at the site where the teenager was shot. At the 
latter site, hundreds of masked self-styled anarchists gathered among 
the largely peaceful crowd and, on leaving, clashed with riot police 
which, in turn, used copious amounts of tear gas to clear the area.

Some of the rioters entered the National Technical University nearby 
from which they pelted police with rocks and flares.

Outside parliament, they left candles spelling out the name “Alex” in 
front of a line of riot policemen.

The young protesters promised to remain on the streets until their 
concerns - including opposition to increasingly unpopular government and 
worry over economic issues – are addressed.

“Speaking as an anarchist, we want to create those social conditions 
that will generate more uprisings and to get more people out in the 
streets to demand their rights,” said 32-year-old protester Paris 
Kyriakides.

“In the end, the violence that we use is minimal in comparison to the 
violence the system uses, like the banks.”

Earlier a crowd of about 1,000 people demonstrated in the northern city 
of Thessaloniki.

One 16-year-old student at the Athens demonstration, who gave only her 
first name, Veatriki, said young people her age felt their voices were 
being heard immediately when they smashed a shop window or a car.

She said young people wanted to see the policemen involved in the 
shooting punished and the police disarmed.

The two officers involved in the boy’s shooting have been arrested. One 
was charged with murder and the other as an accomplice. The 
circumstances surrounding the shooting remain unclear.







http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/12/14/greece.riots/index.html?eref=edition_europe

December 14, 2008 -- Updated 1054 GMT (1854 HKT)

Greek protesters call for more action
• Story Highlights
• Greek students have called for daily protests starting Monday
• Violence sparked by police shooting of 15-year-old boy now in 15th day
• Protests have become outlet for simmering resentment of government

ATHENS, Greece (CNN) -- Greek students have called for daily protests 
starting Monday, 10 days after the police killing of a 15-year-old boy 
in Athens sparked demonstrations that have thrown the country into turmoil.

Riot police avoid being hit by a Molotov cocktail thrown by protesters 
in Athens.
more photos »

Monday's sit-in is set to take place in front of the country's national 
police headquarters, with students urging similar demonstrations in 
front of police precincts across the country.
They have called for roads to be blocked on Tuesday, a demonstration 
Wednesday outside the courthouse where the police involved in the 
shooting will be testifying, and a nationwide protest on Thursday.
Authorities are bracing for potential violence following more than a 
week of riots which have become an outlet for simmering anger about the 
economy, education and jobs.
The unrest is threatening the government's hold on power, with some 
opposition groups calling for fresh elections. Stores and international 
businesses have been attacked, and at least 280 people have been 
detained by police. Of that total, 176 were arrested, 130 of them over 
looting.
There was a rash of demonstrations Saturday, the one-week anniversary of 
the death of Alexis Grigoropolous, including attacks on a police station 
in the Athens district of Exarchaia and on the environment ministry 
building by angry protesters with stones and Molotov cocktails.
The main demonstration Saturday was a peaceful candlelit vigil in front 
of Parliament on Syntagma Square in the capital.
Don't Miss
• Clashes, strike shut down Athens
• Explainer: Why is there unrest in Greece?
• iReport.com: At the funeral
Several thousand people turned out for the demonstration, many of them 
students but including people of all ages and from all walks of life. 
Demonstrators held a similar sit-in in the northern city of Thessaloniki.
Some stayed for an all-night sit-in.

There was relative calms in the streets and across the country as Sunday 
dawned.
The two officers involved in the December 6 shooting were remanded into 
custody Wednesday pending trial. One is charged with premeditated 
manslaughter and the other with acting as an accomplice.






http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=081214174736.vn19w8i6&show_article=1

Greek militants warn of new protests

Dec 14 12:47 PM US/Eastern Comments (0)

Greek militants warned of new protests Sunday after an attack on an 
Athens police station became the latest clash with authority over the 
police killing of a teenager.
About 100 protesters attacked a police station where two officers 
accused over the December 6 death of 15-year-old Alexis Grigoropoulos 
are based.
The police station is near the Exarchia district where the shooting took 
place and where on Sunday Athens Polytechnic student protest leaders met 
to plan new action.
Pamphlets announced rallies at the Athens police headquarters on Monday 
and at parliament square on Thursday.
The new unrest erupted after vigils were held to mark the week since 
Grigropoulos' death and triggered a wave of violence with banks targeted 
and a late-night stand-off between riot police and youths outside 
parliament.
Police said 86 arrests were made during the night.
Police said youths hurled Molotov cocktails and set off fires at three 
banks near the Polytechnic.
Protesters also struck an environment ministry office, torched luxury 
cars and blocked roads with blazing bins.
At Thessaloniki, in northern Greece, youths vandalised a gym before 
retreating behind university walls. Two blasts hit Greek Communist Party 
offices in the country's second city.
Greece's constitution bans police from entering educational 
establishments, a legacy of a crackdown on a 1973 student protest 
against the country's then military dictatorship in which 44 
demonstrators were killed.
The week of protests have reignited radical groups against Greece's 
right wing government.
The opposition socialists have demanded fresh elections and an Athens 
office of the ruling conservative party was targeted by youths employing 
slogans including "killer state."
Mourners congregated Saturday at the spot where the boy fell after some 
2,000 demonstrators had already squared up to police outside parliament.
Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis has rejected calls to quit, 
saying the country needs "a steady hand" to deal with economic downturn, 
"not scenarios about elections and successions."
However, with a quarter of 15-24-year-olds unemployed, anger would grow 
in coming months as more and more people lose their jobs in Greece, a 
top union official said.
"A massive wave of redundancies will kick in come the New Year when, 
according to our estimates, 100,000 jobs will be lost, which represents 
an additional five percent on the unemployment rate," said Stathis 
Anestis of Greece's most powerful union, the General Confederation of 
Greek workers (GSEE).
A former socialist minister, Yannos Papantoniou, blamed the "tragic 
consequences of accumulated failures and (political) impasses." 
Socialists held power for two decades until September 2007.
Solidarity protests have been held in European capitals including Paris, 
Berlin and Moscow.
A Sunday poll suggested most Greeks see the violent protests as a 
"popular uprising," not driven by "minority activists."
Seventy-six percent of those questioned were "dissatisfied" with the 
police response. Just 20 percent approved of Karamanlis' handling.
Before being charged, the officer who shot Grigoropoulos told a 
magistrate he had shot in self defence and the boy was killed when the 
bullet ricocheted.







http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/stories/2008/12/15/124385b0baea

More protests ahead in Greece
Updated at 6:07am on 15 December 2008
Greek students announced new rallies on Sunday after another night of 
violence over the police shooting of a teenager.
A police station in Athens was firebombed on Saturday night. It was next 
to the Exarchia district where Alexis Grigoropoulos, 15, was killed by a 
police bullet on 6 December.
The officer who fired the shot says he killed the boy accidentally in 
self-defence due to a bullet ricochet. A ballistics report is yet to be 
made public.
Police said they made 86 arrests over the course of Saturday's protests.
Pamphlets announced rallies in front of the Athens police headquarters 
on Monday and in parliament square on Thursday.
Opposition socialists are pressing for fresh elections.
However, Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis has dismissed calls to quit, 
saying the country needs "a steady hand on the helm" to deal with the 
current financial crisis.






http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/12/14/greece.riots/index.html?eref=edition_europe

December 14, 2008 -- Updated 1054 GMT (1854 HKT)
•
Share this on:
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Greek protesters call for more action
• Story Highlights
• Greek students have called for daily protests starting Monday
• Violence sparked by police shooting of 15-year-old boy now in 15th day
• Protests have become outlet for simmering resentment of government


ATHENS, Greece (CNN) -- Greek students have called for daily protests 
starting Monday, 10 days after the police killing of a 15-year-old boy 
in Athens sparked demonstrations that have thrown the country into turmoil.

Riot police avoid being hit by a Molotov cocktail thrown by protesters 
in Athens.
more photos »

Monday's sit-in is set to take place in front of the country's national 
police headquarters, with students urging similar demonstrations in 
front of police precincts across the country.
They have called for roads to be blocked on Tuesday, a demonstration 
Wednesday outside the courthouse where the police involved in the 
shooting will be testifying, and a nationwide protest on Thursday.
Authorities are bracing for potential violence following more than a 
week of riots which have become an outlet for simmering anger about the 
economy, education and jobs.
The unrest is threatening the government's hold on power, with some 
opposition groups calling for fresh elections. Stores and international 
businesses have been attacked, and at least 280 people have been 
detained by police. Of that total, 176 were arrested, 130 of them over 
looting.
There was a rash of demonstrations Saturday, the one-week anniversary of 
the death of Alexis Grigoropolous, including attacks on a police station 
in the Athens district of Exarchaia and on the environment ministry 
building by angry protesters with stones and Molotov cocktails.
The main demonstration Saturday was a peaceful candlelit vigil in front 
of Parliament on Syntagma Square in the capital.
Several thousand people turned out for the demonstration, many of them 
students but including people of all ages and from all walks of life. 
Demonstrators held a similar sit-in in the northern city of Thessaloniki.
Some stayed for an all-night sit-in.
There was relative calms in the streets and across the country as Sunday 
dawned.
The two officers involved in the December 6 shooting were remanded into 
custody Wednesday pending trial. One is charged with premeditated 
manslaughter and the other with acting as an accomplice






http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=081214021359.3utyqpwt&show_article=1

Greece braces for second week of protests over boy's death

Dec 13 09:14 PM US/Eastern Comments (0)

Greece on Sunday braced for a second week of protests over the death of 
a teenager by a police bullet, as demonstrators staged fresh violence 
moments after vigils were held for the schoolboy victim.
Around 100 hooded youths firebombed a station next to Athens' Exarchia 
district late Saturday, where 15-year-old Alexis Grigoropoulos died from 
a police bullet a week ago.
At about the same time, similar numbers in Thessaloniki, Greece's second 
city, vandalised a gymnasium before holing up behind university walls.


About 200 youths stationed themselves before parliament in Athens late 
Saturday as security forces ringed them and then chased them away.
A police source said demonstrators hurled Molotov cocktails qnd set off 
fires at three banks near the Athens Polytechnic from where self-styled 
anarchist leaders say they are planning a sustained campaign.
An office of the environment ministry and public property were also 
targeted, with bins set ablaze across the area, police added.
The fresh outbreak of hostilities followed largely silent ceremonies 
marking the moment Grigoropoulos was killed.
Greece has been gripped over the past eight days by a deep-rooted 
protest movement which has succeeded in uniting mainstream and radical 
youth and that the opposition socialists are seizing upon to press for 
fresh elections.
The lull during peaceful rallies led by several hundred mourners holding 
lit candles and posting messages on a wall by the spot where the boy 
fell, had followed overnight attacks on banks and more tense stand-offs 
with police.
Some 2,000 demonstrators -- mainly Polytechnic students -- had earlier 
Saturday squared up to police outside the Greek parliament on the eighth 
day of their dogged challenge.
They brandished a large banner which read: "06/12/08, Alexis 
Grigoropoulos, I won't forget."
Student pamphlets also announced rallies planned in front of the Athens 
police headquarters on Monday and back at parliament square on Thursday, 
when school pupils and teachers are expected to support the protests.
About 2,000 youths also marched peacefully in Thessaloniki on Saturday 
afternoon, while later some 300 gathered silently around the city's 
emblematic White Tower monument.
Police have identified five banks attacked with gas canisters in Athens 
overnight Friday. A local party office of the ruling conservative party 
was also targeted.
The deeply held anger which has emerged within the lower end of the 
15-24 age group -- a quarter of whom nationally remain unemployed -- 
could fester for months, if past Greek unrest is taken as a guide.
Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis has meanwhile dismissed 
opposition calls to quit saying: "At this time the country faces a 
serious financial crisis... a steady hand on the helm is needed to deal 
with it.
"That is my concern, that is the priority of the government, not 
scenarios about elections and successions.
The offices of lawyer Alexis Kougias, representing two policemen charged 
over Grigoropoulos's death, have already been trashed, while elsewhere 
in Europe, demonstrators have blocked traffic on the Champs-Elysees in 
Paris with hundreds marching in Berlin to show solidarity.
The officer who shot Grigoropoulos says he killed the boy by accident 
out of self defence due to a bullet ricochet. A ballistics report, said 
to confirm that the handgun was not pointed at him, has yet to be released.







http://news.iafrica.com/worldnews/1382142.htm

More protests in Greece
Sun, 14 Dec 2008 07:55
Greece on Sunday braced for a second week of protests over the death of 
a teenager by a police bullet, as demonstrators staged fresh violence 
moments after vigils were held for the schoolboy victim.
Around 100 hooded youths firebombed a station next to Athens' Exarchia 
district late Saturday, where 15-year-old Alexis Grigoropoulos died from 
a police bullet a week ago.
At about the same time, similar numbers in Thessaloniki, Greece's second 
city, vandalised a gymnasium before holing up behind university walls.
About 200 youths stationed themselves before parliament in Athens late 
on Saturday, as security forces ringed them and then chased them away.
A police source said demonstrators hurled Molotov cocktails and set off 
fires at three banks near the Athens Polytechnic from where self-styled 
anarchist leaders say they are planning a sustained campaign.
An office of the environment ministry and public property were also 
targeted, with bins set ablaze across the area, police added.
The fresh outbreak of hostilities followed largely silent ceremonies 
marking the moment Grigoropoulos was killed.
Greece has been gripped over the past eight days by a deep-rooted 
protest movement which has succeeded in uniting mainstream and radical 
youth and that the opposition socialists are seizing upon to press for 
fresh elections.
The lull during peaceful rallies led by several hundred mourners holding 
lit candles and posting messages on a wall by the spot where the boy 
fell, had followed overnight attacks on banks and more tense stand-offs 
with police.
Some 2000 demonstrators — mainly Polytechnic students — had earlier on 
Saturday squared up to police outside the Greek parliament on the eighth 
day of their dogged challenge.
They brandished a large banner which read: "06/12/08, Alexis 
Grigoropoulos, I won't forget."
Student pamphlets also announced rallies planned in front of the Athens 
police headquarters on Monday and back at parliament square on Thursday, 
when school pupils and teachers are expected to support the protests.
About 2000 youths also marched peacefully in Thessaloniki on Saturday 
afternoon, while later some 300 gathered silently around the city's 
emblematic White Tower monument.
Police have identified five banks attacked with gas canisters in Athens 
overnight Friday. A local party office of the ruling conservative party 
was also targeted.
The deeply held anger which has emerged within the lower end of the 
15-24 age group — a quarter of whom nationally remain unemployed — could 
fester for months, if past Greek unrest is taken as a guide.
Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis has meanwhile dismissed 
opposition calls to quit saying: "At this time the country faces a 
serious financial crisis... a steady hand on the helm is needed to deal 
with it.
"That is my concern, that is the priority of the government, not 
scenarios about elections and successions.
The offices of lawyer Alexis Kougias, representing two policemen charged 
over Grigoropoulos's death, have already been trashed, while elsewhere 
in Europe, demonstrators have blocked traffic on the Champs-Elysees in 
Paris with hundreds marching in Berlin to show solidarity.
The officer who shot Grigoropoulos says he killed the boy by accident 
out of self defence due to a bullet ricochet. A ballistics report, said 
to confirm that the handgun was not pointed at him, has yet to be released.
AFP








Saturday DECEMBER 13th

http://www.setimes.com/cocoon/setimes/xhtml/en_GB/newsbriefs/setimes/newsbriefs/2008/12/14/nb-02

New wave of protests hits Greece
14/12/2008
ATHENS, Greece -- As many as 100 hooded youths attacked a police station 
Saturday (December 13th) in Athens's Exarchia district, where a 
15-year-old boy was killed December 6th in an incident that sparked a 
wave of riots across the country. Police used tear gas to ward off the 
rampage. Fire bombs were also reportedly thrown at branches of the Greek 
National Bank and Eurobank, as well as businesses and a government 
office. Similar violence was reported in Thessaloniki, with local 
businesses and a gymnasium among the targets.
Earlier Saturday, thousands of young people gathered in Athens and 
Thessaloniki to protest the death of the boy, Alexis Grigoropoulos. He 
and another teenager were throwing rocks and incendiary devices at a 
police car when an officer in the vehicle fired his gun, killing 
Grigoropoulos. The policeman insists the death was an accident.
On Friday, Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis said "no" to early 
elections. At a press conference in Brussels, Karamanlis vowed to 
guarantee the security of all Greek citizens.
In other news, an earthquake measuring 5.2 on the Richter scale rattled 
central Greece on Saturday, damaging several houses. Its epicentre was 
10km south of the city of Lamia. (AFP, AP, RIA Novosti, BBC - 14/12/08; 
Eleftherotypia, ANA-MPA, AFP - 13/12/08; MIA - 12/11/08)






http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122925608458704661.html?mod=rss_whats_news_europe

• DECEMBER 14, 2008, 8:30 A.M. ET
Athens Calm After Rioters Attack Police Station, Banks Overnight
ATHENS, Greece -- Athens was calm Sunday after eight days of the worst 
riots Greece has seen in decades, sparked by the police killing of a 
teenager.
No demonstrations were planned for Sunday. In Athens, traffic returned 
to normal in the center of town and an open-topped double-decker bus 
carried tourists round the city's main sights.
Greek youths, who have protested daily since the boy's death, are angry 
not just at the police but at an increasingly unpopular government and 
over economic issues.
View Full Image

Associated Press
Protesters throw missiles toward Greek riot police officers on a street 
in Athens on Saturday.

Overnight, youths attacked a police station, stores and banks and fought 
running battles with police, as candlelit vigils were held to mark a 
week since the shooting.
Several hundred protesters set up burning barricades and attacked police 
with rocks and flares. Riot police fired tear gas and chased the youths 
through parts of the city.
The protesters chanted "murderers out" and used laser pointers to target 
officers for attack.
Violence has wracked Greece every day since the death of 15-year-old 
Alexandros Grigoropoulos. The riots in cities throughout the country 
have left at least 70 people injured. Hundreds of stores have been 
smashed and looted, and more than 200 people have been arrested.
While most of the protesters have been peaceful, the tone of the 
demonstrations has been set by a violent fringe. And more young people 
have been willing to join those fringe elements than in the past.
A poll Sunday found that most Greeks see more in the violence than a 
simple reaction to the shooting. Asked whether the riots were a social 
uprising, 60% responded yes. Some 64% felt police were unprepared for 
the violence. The poll of 520 people published in the Kathimerini 
newspaper gave a 4.5% margin of error.
The young protesters promised to remain on the streets until their 
concerns -- including opposition to the increasingly unpopular 
government and worry over economic issues -- are addressed.
"Speaking as an anarchist, we want to create those social conditions 
that will generate more uprisings and to get more people out in the 
streets to demand their rights," said 32-year-old protester Paris 
Kyriakides.





http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/7782039.stm

Sunday, 14 December 2008
Violent protests resume in Greece
Footage of the latest rioting in Greece
There have been further riots in Greece in protest at the killing by 
police of a 15-year-old boy eight days ago.
Violent clashes broke out in the capital, Athens, on Saturday evening 
following a day of largely peaceful vigils for Alexandros Grigoropoulos.
Youths threw petrol bombs at banks and the police station where the 
officer charged with the teenager's killing was based. Police responded 
with tear gas.
At least 70 people have been injured in the protests sparked by the 
shooting.
The unrest has spread throughout the country, and has prompted calls for 
Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis and his government to stand down.
Mr Karamanlis has vowed not to be swayed by protests, insisting Greece 
needs experienced leadership at a time of economic crisis.
'Murderers out'
The BBC's Malcolm Brabant in Athens says the clashes on Saturday evening 
have been the most serious disturbances for several days.


The protesters used laser pointers to target police for attack

New generation flexes muscles
Have Your Say

The protests in memory of Alexandros Grigoropoulos's death last Saturday 
in Exarchia had begun peacefully.
Students of the school the teenager had attended held a silent vigil 
during the day in Syntagma Square. Hours later, hundreds of others 
brought candles to the site, while others gathered at the site of the 
shooting.
But later, about 100 youths hurled volleys of petrol bombs and rocks at 
a police station in the Exarchia district, where the officer, who shot 
him and has now been charged with murder, was based. The protesters 
chanted "murderers out".
Wearing hoods and masks, the protesters then turned their attention to a 
commercial area near the National Technical University of Athens, known 
as the Polytechnic, overturning cars and setting fire to three banks. 
Several shops and an office of the environment ministry were also attacked.
Riot police positioned at street corners in the area responded by firing 
tear gas at the protesters.
Several restaurants in Exarchia had already closed early in anticipation 
of the violence. Many shop owners meanwhile boarded up their windows as 
night fell.
Police subsequently charged the vigil in nearby Syntagma Square, when 
those taking part refused to move further away from the parliament 
building and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
Meanwhile in Greece's second city of Thessaloniki, dozens of youths 
vandalised a gymnasium during a demonstration, according to the AFP news 
agency.
Broader complaints
Our correspondent says anger at the killing of the teenager has 
developed into a widespread sense of anger at Greece's government over 
the past week.

Some semblance of calm had returned to Athens on Saturday
Thousands of Greeks have taken to the streets across the country, 
repeatedly clashing with police and vowing to overthrow the government.
Many have identified themselves as anarchists happy to use violence in 
what they say are legitimate protests against the government.
Some, though, have welcomed the return of a semblance of calm prior to 
the violence on Saturday evening. In Athens, Mayor Nikitas Kaklamanis 
greeted Christmas shoppers with the city's brass band.
"People came up to me and were telling me that it was the first time 
they had smiled in days," the mayor told the Associated Press.







http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/dec/14/greece

Fresh riots in Athens as protests in Greece enter eighth day
• Jenny Percival and agencies
• guardian.co.uk, Sunday 14 December 2008 11.48 GMT
• Article history

A youth assaults a police officer in Athens during a week of riots. 
Photograph: Bela Szandelszky/AP
Violent clashes broke out in Athens last night on the eighth day of 
rioting in protest at the police killing of a teenager.
Youths attacked a police station, shops and banks and fought running 
battles with police, as candlelit vigils were being held to mark a week 
since the fatal shooting of 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos.
Several hundred protesters set up burning barricades and attacked police 
with rocks and flares. Riot police fired teargas and chased the youths 
through parts of the Greek capital. The protesters chanted "murderers 
out" and used laser pointers to target officers for attack.
Violence has wracked Greece every day since the death of Grigoropoulos. 
The protesters are demonstrating against not just the boy's death but at 
an increasingly unpopular government and mounting economic worries. The 
riots in cities across the country have left at least 70 people injured. 
Hundreds of shops have been attacked and looted, and more than 200 
people arrested.
While most of the protests have been peaceful, the tone of the 
demonstrations has been set by a violent fringe, with more young people 
willing to join such elements than in the past.
Athens remained calm this morning, with no plans for further protests. 
Traffic returned to normal in the city centre and an open-topped 
double-decker bus carried tourists round the capital's main sights.
An opinion poll published today in the Kathimerini newspaper found that 
most Greeks consider the violence as more than a simple reaction to the 
shooting.
Asked whether the riots constituted a social uprising, 60% responded 
yes. Sixty-four percent said police were unprepared for the violence.
The protesters promised to remain on the streets until their concerns 
are addressed.
One protester, 32-year-old Paris Kyriakides, said: "Speaking as an 
anarchist, we want to create those social conditions that will generate 
more uprisings and to get more people out in the streets to demand their 
rights.
"In the end, the violence that we use is minimal in comparison to the 
violence the system uses, like the banks."






http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1228728176403

Dec 13, 2008 12:25 | Updated Dec 13, 2008 12:29
Protesters promise to continue demonstrating on Greek streets
By ASSOCIATED PRESS
ATHENS, Greece

Protesters are promising to remain on the streets of Greece, one week 
after the police killing of a 15-year-old boy sparked massive riots.

A young boy walks by a burning barricade in the northern Greek city of 
Thessaloniki as rioters smashed, burned and looted buildings in several 
Greek cities on Monday.
Photo: AP
SLIDESHOW: Israel & Region | World
Demonstrations are scheduled Saturday, followed by daily rallies over 
the next week, including plans to gather outside police headquarters.
Riots that followed the police shooting of 15-year-old Alexandros 
Grigoropoulos have left hundreds of stores smashed and looted. At least 
70 people have been injured and more than 200 arrested.
The protests are driven in part by the widening gap between rich and 
poor in a country where the minimum monthly wage is €658 ($850), 
graduates have poor job prospects and the government is making painful 
reforms to the pension system.
"It is clear that this wave of discontent will not die down. This rage 
is spreading because the underlying causes remain," said veteran 
left-wing politician Leonidas Kyrkos.
At the site where Grigoropoulos was shot, scores of people came to leave 
flowers and pin messages to a notice board. A privately made street sign 
was placed on the corner of the block with the teenager's name.
Internet tribute sites were also flooded with messages.
"We want a better world. We are not hooligans or terrorists ... we are 
your children. You were young once too." wrote "Theo" on one of several 
groups dedicated to the dead teenager on Internet networking site Facebook.
Beleaguered Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis on Friday ruled out early 
elections, and renewed calls on opposition parties to issue stronger 
public condemnations of the violence.
"We must make a very clear distinction between the overwhelming majority 
of the Greek people who of course have every right to express their 
sorrow at the death of a young boy, and the minority of extremists who 
take refuge in acts of extreme violence." he said.
Athens Mayor Nikitas Kaklamanis renewed calls for demonstrations to 
remain peaceful and promised to replace the city's torched Christmas 
tree next week.
"Those people who caused damage don't love this city," Kaklamanis said. 
"I'm asking for everyone to come to join the Christmas celebrations, as 
an answer to these people ... Athens will get back on its feet."
Christmas shoppers cautiously returned to central Athens Saturday, with 
many shops boarding up their windows instead of replacing glass for fear 
of further violence.
Glazier Michalis Mentis said he had replaced several storefronts twice. 
"There's been a lot of work for us but it's very bad for businesses in 
general," Mentis said. "It's very lucky more people were not hurt, 
because there was so much damage."






http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,466664,00.html

Rioters in Greece Attack Police Station, Banks
Saturday, December 13, 2008 | FoxNews.com

AP

Dec. 12: Riot police attempt to assist a colleague covered in flames 
from a petrol bomb thrown by protesters, during clashes in central Athens.
ATHENS, Greece — Rioting youths in the Greek capital attacked a police 
station, stores and banks and fought running battles with police late 
Saturday, authorities said, as violent protests against a police killing 
continued for the seventh straight day.
The clashes broke out as candlelit vigils were being held to mark a week 
since the police shooting of a 15-year-old boy, which triggered the 
riots that are threatening the stability of the government.
Youths — some on foot, others riding motorcycles — attacked a police 
station with petrol bombs in central Athens as well as at least three 
banks, several stores and a government building, police said.
Several hundred protesters set up burning barricades and attacked police 
with rocks and flares. Riot police fired tear gas and chased the youths 
through parts of the city. The protesters chanted "murderers out" and 
used laser pointers to target police for attack.
Click here for photos.
Violence has wracked Greece every day since the death of teenager 
Alexandros Grigoropoulos. The riots in cities throughout the country has 
left at least 70 people injured. Hundreds of stores have been smashed 
and looted, and more than 200 people have been arrested.
While most of the protesters have been peaceful, the tone of the 
demonstrations has been set by a violent fringe. And more young people 
have been willing to join those fringe elements than in the past.
Hundreds of school children holding candles gathered peacefully Saturday 
outside parliament and at the site where teenager was shot.
Outside parliament, they left candles spelling out the name "Alex" in 
front of a line of riot policemen.
The young protesters promised to remain on the streets until their 
concerns — including opposition to increasingly unpopular government and 
worry over economic issues — are addressed.
"Speaking as an anarchist, we want to create those social conditions 
that will generate more uprisings and to get more people out in the 
streets to demand their rights," said 32-year-old protester Paris 
Kyriakides.
"In the end, the violence that we use is minimal in comparison to the 
violence of the system uses, like the banks," Kyriakides said.
Earlier Saturday, a crowd of about 1,000 people attended a peaceful 
sit-down demonstration in Athens and another 1,000 demonstrated in the 
northern city of Thessaloniki.
One 16-year-old student at the Athens demonstration, who gave only her 
first name, Veatriki, said young people her age felt their voices were 
being heard immediately when they smashed a shop window or a car.
She also said young people want to see the policemen involved in the 
shooting punished and the police disarmed.
The two officers involved in the boy's shooting have been arrested. One 
was charged with murder and the other as an accomplice. The 
circumstances surrounding the shooting remain unclear.
Giorgos Kyrtsos, publisher of the City Press and Free Sunday newspapers, 
said the violent demonstrations revealed widespread public discontent.
"We are entering a long period of economic crisis," Kyrtsos said. "But 
there is also a deepening social crisis, combined with a weakened state. 
We are truly at a crossroads."
Kyrtsos, a conservative, was highly critical of the government's 
handling of the protests.
"This is the only government I remember that has managed to alienate 
both the rebellious youth and the law-and-order crowd," he said. "It has 
nothing to offer to anybody."
Christmas shoppers cautiously returned to central Athens earlier 
Saturday, but many stores had boarded up their windows instead of 
replacing the glass, for fear of further violence.
Athens Mayor Nikitas Kaklamanis greeted shoppers with the city's brass band.
"People came up to me and were telling me that it was the first time 
they had smiled in days," the mayor said.






http://www.philly.com/inquirer/world_us/20081213_Greeks_protest_for_a_7th_day_and_vow_more.html

Posted on Sat, Dec. 13, 2008

Greeks protest for a 7th day and vow more
By Elena Becatoros
Associated Press
ATHENS, Greece - Protesters took to the streets of Athens for the 
seventh day yesterday, vowing to maintain pressure on the government 
with both peaceful demonstrations and violent clashes.
Youths pelted riot police with rocks and firebombs. Colleagues saved one 
officer who was covered in blazing gasoline. He was unhurt.
Demonstrators in France, Germany and Turkey put on shows of support for 
the Greek protests, which erupted when police killed a teenager but now 
seem to be driven in part by economic discontent.
There is a widening gap between rich and poor in the country. Graduates 
have poor job prospects, and the government is making painful changes to 
the pension system.
"This rage is spreading because the underlying causes remain," left-wing 
politician Leonidas Kyrkos said.
Beleaguered Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis ruled out early elections, 
saying from Brussels, Belgium, that Greece needed a steady hand to steer 
it through the global financial crisis.
"We must make a very clear distinction between the overwhelming majority 
of the Greek people who of course have every right to express their 
sorrow at the death of a young boy, and the minority of extremists who 
take refuge in acts of extreme violence," he said.
Dozens of people have been treated in hospitals during the unrest, 
sparked last Saturday by the killing of a 15-year-old. The level of 
violence has abated, but tear gas and the smoke from burned cars still 
hang in the air in central Athens.
"Financial targets are being attacked, like banks, to prove a point of 
economic oppression," said Constantinos Sakkas, 23, a protest organizer. 
". . . Some people hardly have enough to eat."
In Paris, 300 demonstrators gathered outside the Greek Embassy. Some 
scuffled with police, shouting, "Police, pigs, everywhere!"
Some cautioned that riots could explode in France, too, saying that 
French students and laborers were struggling to find decent work.
Protesters also marched through Berlin's Kreuzberg neighborhood, and in 
Turkey, leftists staged a peaceful protest outside the Greek Consulate 
in Istanbul.






http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/12/415330.html

New protests in Athens, solidarity actions across Europe
Chris Marsden | 13.12.2008 20:54 | World
Youth clashed with police during a protest in Athens Friday over the 
police killing of 15-year-old Alexis Grigoropoulos. Thousands took part 
in the anti-government rally, culminating a week of protests that show 
no signs of abating.

Several thousand people, mainly students and teachers, assembled outside 
the University of Athens and marched towards parliament, chanting, 
"Blood demands vengeance" and "One underground, a thousand in the 
street." The protest was headed by a banner reading, "Killer State."

Roads were cordoned off around the parliament, which was protected by 
thousands of police. Youth threw firebombs and stones at police, who 
fired back teargas before the start of the demonstration near Syntagma 
Square. Riot police attacked a group of around 100, seizing several and 
wrestling them to the ground, according to Agence France-Presse. Stun 
grenades were also fired.

Protesters also entered the National Bank of Greece's main branch and 
staff fled the building. Demonstrators briefly occupied a private radio 
station in Athens, reading a statement on air, and a municipal building 
in the northwestern city of Ioannina.

Another rally took place in Greece's second largest city of Thessaloniki.

Reports state that the police are running out of teargas after using 
some 4,600 capsules in the last week and have approached Germany and 
Israel for urgent supplies. The violence employed against demonstrators 
is such that parents and other adults have had to stand between 
protesting youth and baton-wielding police.

The previous day, youth clashed with police outside the Exarchia 
district's Athens Polytechnic, where Grigoropoulos was shot dead. The 
poly has been occupied since Monday. Students staged sit-ins at 120 high 
schools and 15 universities nationally and blocked 10 major streets in 
the capital.

A 24-hour general strike on December 10 against Prime Minister Costas 
Karamanlis's austerity budget and €28 billion handout to the banks also 
became a focus for anti-government sentiment. Protesters shouted "Sack 
Karamanlis" as over a thousand police surrounded the parliament 
building. That same day, police officer Epaminondas Korkoneas was 
charged with voluntary homicide and illegal use of his service weapon 
and Vassilios Saraliotis was charged as an accomplice.

There was widespread anger over Korkoneas's failure to express regret 
over the killing, with the Ethnos newspaper describing his lack of 
remorse as "pouring petrol on the flames."

Outside the court, petrol bombs were hurled as the officers' lawyer, 
Alexis Kouyais, spoke to reporters. Kouyais's denunciations of 
Grigoropoulos as a "hooligan" who had been kicked out of school were 
condemned by the Athens Bar Association (DSA) as "slanderous and counter 
to the lawyers' code of ethics." The student's former school has 
rejected the claim.

"Slandering the dead 15-year-old, either personally or through 
repetition of the views of his client to the mass media, as well as the 
defamation of the lawyers who did not accept to undertake the defence, 
is a contravention of the rules of deontology in the practice of law and 
the duty of a direct manner of defence. It comprises a 
new—ethical—murder that fuels the tension in these days when the entire 
Greek society is rising up and demonstrating, in tribute to his memory 
and against police arbitrariness," the DSA wrote. Kouyais now faces the 
threat of dismissal.

The Korydallos prison, where the two officers are detained, was besieged 
by high school students. Thousands of students marched towards police 
stations at Patissia, Glyfada, Ilioupolis, Korydallos, Melissia and 
other areas of Athens. At least 10 cities have been hit by protests.

There have also been a series of solidarity protests throughout Europe. 
There are reports of demonstrations in more than 20 countries. Greeks 
protested in Paris, Berlin, London, Rome, The Hague, Moscow, New York, 
Italy and Cyprus. According to Reuters, protesters in Spain, Denmark and 
Italy "smashed shop windows, pelted police with bottles and attacked 
banks." There were 11 arrests in Spain and 62 in Copenhagen.

Karamanlis, who has only a single seat majority, has rejected calls for 
his resignation and early elections. On Friday, he insisted that in time 
of crisis the country required a steady hand.

"That is my concern and the concern and the priority of the government, 
and not scenarios about elections and successions," he told reporters 
while attending the European Union summit in Brussels. He denounced 
"blind violence" and "the activities of extreme elements."

The BBC reported, "Correspondents say the government may impose a state 
of emergency to bring an end to the violence, but that there is no 
question of troops being called in."

So deep is the anger over the young boy's killing that, in a 
parliamentary discussion, Interior Minister Prokopis Pavlopoulos 
acknowledged what he called a "murderous act" and promised that "justice 
will be served." But he went on to defend the police and threaten 
retribution against the protesters.

"Isolated incidents, no matter how heinous, cannot mar the image of 
police acting within the framework of legality," he said, and warned 
that "the enemies of democracy will not remain under a hood for much 
longer. We show no tolerance and never will."

The New Democracy government was facing questions from opposition 
Communist Party of Greece (KKE) MP Spyros Halvatzis and Radical Left 
Coalition (SYRIZA) Parliamentary Group Leader Alekos Alavanos, both of 
whom solidarised themselves with Pavlopoulos's condemnation of violent 
protest. Halvatzis said that many of those participating in the riots 
were not students, while Alavanos said his party "condemns violence" and 
has called only for the democratic reorganization of the police.

Everything possible is being done by the opposition parties, led by the 
Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK), as well as the trade unions to 
isolate the students and youth and thereby restore order. But none have 
acted as strenuously as the Communist Party. It has taken up the 
accusations by the right wing that SYRIZA, which includes former 
euro-Communists who split from the KKE and various radical groupings, 
supports violence.

Yesterday's demonstration was called on the basis of a common statement 
of "anti-capitalist left organizations" saluting "the demonstrations 
against the government of murderers all over Greece" and denouncing 
police repression under the slogan of all such protests: "Down with this 
government of murderers and thieves!"

The hard-line Stalinists of the Communist Party have accused all those 
taking part of providing cover for "the provocateurs" and have been 
congratulated by Employment Minister Fani Palli-Petralia for their 
"responsible" attitude. The KKE's own demonstrations have urged efforts 
to preserve "social peace" against the "ultra-left" and "anarchists." 
The KKE's youth organization has reportedly taken positions inside and 
outside university faculties, trying to prohibit students involved in 
protests and occupations from assembling.
Chris Marsden
Homepage: http://www.wsws.org






http://www.fijilive.com/news_new/index.php/news/show_news/11574

School is battleground for Athens protests
12/12/2008
________________________________________
The overpowering smell of tear gas and smoke from burned out cars hangs 
in the streets around the elite Athens Polytechnic, where students with 
scarves covering their faces are holed up.

The students, gathered round a fire in a metal bin in the courtyard of 
one of Greece's oldest universities, have been at the vanguard of 
nationwide demonstrations after the police killing of a 15-year-old boy 
in a nearby road.

Banners declaring "state killers", "murderers, you will pay", "democracy 
gives arms, cops assassinate" and "silence only shows complicity" hang 
from the Polytechnic buildings.

The students -- future engineers, scientists and technicians -- 
sometimes stray out onto the street in the Exarchia district to lob a 
firebomb or a rock but quickly return, knowing that the police cannot 
follow them.

Greece's constitution bans police from entering educational 
establishments -- a decision resulting from protests by Polytechnic 
students in 1973 that played a key role in ending the country's military 
dictatorship. Forty-four students were killed in the unrest.

"We don't have a council of representatives, we meet twice a day to 
decide on the next step in our struggle," said one of the 12 masked 
protesters.

While there may not yet be revolutionary intent, the protester said the 
students want "the killers to pay."

They told how they have been occupying the Polytechnic since the hours 
after Alexis Grigoropoulos, 15, was fatally shot in an Exarchia street 
on Saturday.

There have been clashes every night since then. The smell of teargas and 
smoke is still everywhere.

Boutiques and restaurants in central Athens may have reopened, Athens 
City Hall may have cleaned up the main avenue leading to the 
Polytechnic, but there are plenty of broken windows and damaged shops 
that testify to the violence.

The students say they do not care about commercial damage. "You speak of 
windows, we're talking about lives," reads one inscription on the walls 
of a nearby building.

The nearby economy faculty has also been occupied. "We're not calling 
for the government to resign," the students say in a leaflet distributed 
at the entrance. "What we want is for the anger in the streets to grow."

Faculty head Grigoris Prastakos tried to speak to the students. He said 
he wants the university to get back to normal.

While Prastokos said he believed most facilities in Athens had escaped 
serious damage, protests in the second city of Thessaoninki are said to 
have left widespread damage.

About 15 university campuses are still occupied in Athens and 
Thessaloniki, according to police.

Exarchia resident Konstantina Starfa, 22, said there is "no 
justification" for the anarchic scenes witnessed in Athens, yet she also 
believes Grigoropoulos' killing "reflects an overbearing social crisis 
within Greece."

On the corner of Messolonguiou and Tzavella streets, people stood 
looking at bouquets of flowers and burning candles left on the pavement. 
This is the spot where the 15 year-old boy was shot on December 6.

"Cops, pigs, assassins," "Screwed-up society" read messages written on 
pieces of paper among the tributes.

AFP







http://www.news8austin.com/content/top_stories/default.asp?ArID=226869

Protesters mark one-week anniversary in Greece
12/13/2008 4:39 PM
By: Associated Press

ATHENS, Greece -- Hundreds of young people holding candles gathered in 
Athens to mark a week since the police shooting of a 15-year-old boy.
The death has triggered massive riots across Greece. The week has seen 
at least 70 people injured and hundreds of stores smashed and looted.
Saturday, teenage protesters held vigils outside parliament and at the 
site where the teen was shot. Candles spelling out the boy's name were 
left in front of a line of riot policemen guarding the parliament building.
The young people said they're not just angry about the boy's death, but 
also about the government and the economy.
They have vowed to continue their street protests until their concerns 
are addressed.






http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2008/1213/breaking49.htm

Saturday, December 13, 2008, 20:43
Youths attack police station in Greece protests
Dozens of youths on foot and motorcycles attacked a police station in 
central Athens tonight, while two banks and a government building were 
also damaged in arson attacks.
The attacks followed a candlelit vigil to mark a week since the police 
killing of a 15-year-old boy that triggered massive riots across Greece.
The youths threw at least one petrol bomb at the police station, before 
smashing paving stones and setting up barricades with burning rubbish bins.
Teenage protesters also held gatherings outside parliament and at the 
site where Alexandros Grigoropoulos was shot.
Candles spelling out the name “Alex” were left in front of a line of 
riot policemen guarding the parliament building.
Greek youths taking part in protests everyday since the boy’s death are 
angry not just at the police but at an increasingly unpopular government 
and over economic issues.
Young protesters have promised to remain on the streets until their 
concerns are addressed.
AP







Friday DECEMBER 12

http://www.b92.net//eng/news/region-article.php?yyyy=2008&mm=12&dd=12&nav_id=55677

Athens calm after six-day protest 12 December 2008 | 09:26 | Source: AFP 
ATHENS -- Athens was relatively calm early Friday after six days of 
protests and clashes, police sources said, according to AFP.

The violenece followed the death of a teenaged schoolboy by a 
policeman's bullet.

The only violence reported was an 23:00 GMT incident when stones were 
thrown at a sports club headed by Antenna television owner Minos 
Kyriakou, who is also the chairman of the Greek Olympic Committee, the 
police said.

Saturday's fatal shooting of 15-year-old Alexis Grigoropoulos unleashed 
a wave of anger against police and the conservative government leading 
to demonstrations, attacks on police targets and looting.

A protest march on parliament in Athens on Thursday ended in minor 
clashes between youths and police while another demonstration in 
Thessaloniki ended peacefully.

But authorities were on alert as a number of universities and faculties 
in Athens and Thessaloniki are still occupied by students and used to 
spring attacks on police.

More demonstrations are scheduled in Athens and Thessaloniki on Friday. 
Greek embassies in other countries have also become a target for protests.

The violence has caused dozens of injuries and left hundreds of banks, 
stores and public buildings destroyed, badly damaged by fire, or looted.

It has also caused a political crisis for Prime Minister Costas 
Karamanlis, whose parliamentary majority consists of just one deputy, 
and whose government was already shaken by corruption scandals and 
unpopular reforms.

The opposition has called on Karamanlis to resign.

Protesters have said they are striking out against police repression, 
corrupt politicians and a social system that offers little hope.

The government has blamed the violence on loosely organized self-styled 
anarchists who have a long tradition of attacking banks, car dealerships 
and other business targets though the scale of the recent attacks is 
unprecedented.

The two officers implicated in Grigoropoulos' killing have been placed 
under pre-trial detention but fresh uproar was caused this week when 
their lawyer said the death "was sadly brought about by an act of God."

The officer who shot Grigoropoulos claims he was trying to defend 
himself from a gang of youths and killed the boy by accident due to a 
bullet ricochet.

A ballistics report is said to confirm the officer's claim but the 
findings have yet to be officially released, raising suspicions of a 
cover-up.







http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,3869141,00.html

Crime | 12.12.2008
Athens Riots Calm as Heavy Rains Dampen Protests

Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Athens has been ravaged 
by several successive nights of rioting
Athens saw its calmest night since the outbreak of violence after a 
fatal police shooting of a Greek teenager last weekend, Greek state 
radio said Friday.

Police reported a lull in rioting as protests were dampened by heavy 
rains falling right across Greece.
The quieting came ahead of the release Friday, Dec. 12, of the results 
of a ballistics examination of the bullet which killed 15-year-old 
schoolboy Alexandros Grigoropoulos on Saturday. Outrage over the 
teenager's death sparked widespread riots across Greece and minor 
flare-ups in other European cities.
The policeman who shot the boy, Epaminondas Korkoneas, remains in 
custody in a high-security prison in the Athens suburb Korydallos after 
being charged with voluntary homicide, which under Greek law does not 
necessarily involve premeditation.
Policeman claims self-defense
Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: 
Violence and rioting throughout Greece has been fierce
Korkoneas is accused of killing Grigoropoulos during a clash with around 
30 youths in the Exarchia district of Athens.
The police officer has claimed self defense. His lawyers said a 
ballistics analysis indicated the bullet had ricocheted before hitting 
the schoolboy.
Korkoneas's partner, Vassilios Saraliotis, 31, was charged with being an 
accomplice and will also remain in custody.
Fresh rallies
New student rallies were planned for Friday and Monday.
On Thursday, the sixth day of demonstrations, about 4,000 students took 
to the streets in Athens in a protest that turned increasingly violent.
Demonstrators clashed with security forces near the country's biggest 
prison and a university in central Athens. Crowds threw rocks and other 
missiles at police, who retaliated using tear gas, a prison guard said.
Attacks on stores in several other areas and road blockades were also 
reported. More than 400 businesses have been hit by the rioting, with 37 
completely gutted. The damage in Athens alone was worth about 200 
million euros ($259 million), according to the Greek Commerce Confederation.
Anger at government reforms
Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: 
Protests spread around Europe as Greek consulates came under fire
The Athens clashes paralleled similar events in other Greek cities and 
throughout Europe as anger was focused against Greek consulates.
Analysts say the severity of the violence was caused by long-simmering 
discontent with the government over a series of financial scandals and 
unpopular economic, pension and education reforms.
The shooting of Grigoropoulos was seen as the last straw by many young 
Greeks, whose economic future is bleak in a country with a high 
unemployment and low wages.

DW staff (dfm)






http://www.voanews.com/english/archive/2008-12/2008-12-12-voa37.cfm?CFID=259716738&CFTOKEN=84033205&jsessionid=6630f6b0ed4a2844ae5c4e4d269427e6752a

Fresh Clashes Break Out Between Greek Youths and Riot Police
By VOA News
12 December 2008

A protester throws a metal crowd barrier at riot police outside 
parliament during a demonstration in central Athens, Greece, 12 Dec 2008
Greek youths have hurled rocks and firebombs at riot police in central 
Athens, as unrest continues for a seventh day following the police 
shooting of a teenager.

Police Friday fired tear gas and clashed with protesters attempting to 
march toward parliament.

Police officials say they are urgently seeking more tear gas from Israel 
and Germany after using more than 4,600 capsules.

Rage over last Saturday's killing has turned into anger over corruption 
and economic hardship. The violence has shaken the conservative 
government of Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis, which has a one-seat 
majority in parliament.

Mr. Karamanlis today rejected mounting calls for his resignation, saying 
his priority was to provide the country steady leadership to tackle the 
financial crisis.

Scores of protesters and police in Athens and the northern city of 
Salonika have been injured since Saturday, when police gunfire in 
Athens' central Exarchia district killed the 15-year-old boy.

Protesters continue to occupy several schools and universities Friday. 
Others briefly took over an Athens radio station and read a statement on 
air.

The two Athens policemen involved in the shooting have been jailed 
pending trial. One faces murder charges, while the other is accused of 
being an accomplice.

The officers say they were only firing warning shots. Their lawyers say 
initial forensic analysis shows the boy was hit by a ricochet, and not a 
direct shot as charged by some witnesses.

Protests have spread beyond Greece's borders, with demonstrations in 
other European cities, including Barcelona, Berlin, Copenhagen, London, 
Madrid, Rome and The Hague.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.






http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/greece/3725047/Greece-runs-out-of-tear-gas-during-violent-protests.html

Greece 'runs out of tear gas' during violent protests
Greece has issued an international appeal for more tear gas after 
supplies ran low because police fired so much of it during a week of 
violent protests across the country.

By Nick Squires in Athens
Last Updated: 6:41PM GMT 12 Dec 2008

Demonstrators, in a cloud of tear gas, hurl rocks at police during 
clashes in central Athens Photo: AP
Officers released 4,600 capsules of tear gas during confrontations in 
Athens and nearly a dozen other cities since riots erupted over the 
fatal shooting of a 15-year-old schoolboy by a policeman last Saturday.
The greek government is urgently seeking fresh supplies of tear gas from 
Israel and Germany, the police said.
Yesterday, a report disputed claims by lawyers for the policeman accused 
of killing Alexandros Grigoropoulos that the bullet hit the boy after 
ricocheting.
The Kathimerini newspaper said that the results of forensic tests on the 
bullet indicated that it had been fired directly at the teenager.
Athens Bar Association condemned the policeman's lawyer, Alexis Kougias, 
for "desecrating the dead" by claiming that the 15-year-old had been a 
troublemaker.
The claims "constitute a moral murder which fuel tensions", the 
association said.
Yesterday, heavy rain helped to curtail demonstrations compared to the 
intensity of recent days but still students and Left-wing activists 
again hurled petrol bombs and stones at police outside Greece's national 
parliament building in the seventh consecutive day of violence.
A group of around 80 students peacefully occupied a radio station in 
Athens, reading a statement over the air and playing music, as many 
Greeks expressed their frustration with the dire political and economic 
situation.
"It was one of the most intense protests we've had in Greece, but today 
it could be the last day. I'm afraid it will be forgotten, like 
everything has been in the past," said Fani Stathoulopoulou, 25. 
"Politicians didn't react as they should."
Greece's socialist opposition has stepped up calls for the prime 
minister to call new elections, amid the worst unrest Greece has seen 
since a military dictatorship ended in 1974.
Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis, whose conservative New Democracy party 
has a parliamentary majority of just one seat, said he had no intention 
of quitting.
"It's evident that we are undergoing a very serious financial crisis as 
well as a crisis in terms of what has been happening in the last few 
days and we therefore need a consistent, responsible government and a 
firm hand to guide the country," he said at an EU summit in Brussels.
"This is for me the priority and not any scenarios about early elections 
or a change in leadership."
As Mr Karamanlis spoke, about 5,000 protesters marched through Athens 
carrying banners saying: "The state kills" and "The government is guilty 
of murder".
Several schools and universities remained occupied by students and 
professors on one campus formed a human chain around the main university 
building to protect it from further damage.






http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/12/11/greece.riots/index.html?eref=edition_europe

December 12, 2008 -- Updated 1112 GMT (1912 HKT)

Athens calms, but protesters vow more fighting
• Story Highlights
• Police spokesman: Situation more contained than it has been since weekend
• Anarchists disrupted clean up and vowed to take to the streets later 
Thursday
• Lawyer for officers accused of shooting teenager say he was killed by 
a ricochet
• Officials fear that if the ricochet theory pans out it could spark 
more riots

ATHENS, Greece (CNN) -- Athens was mostly calm Thursday, allowing many 
Athenians to return to work for the first time in days, but protesters 
warned they were preparing themselves for street fights after nightfall.

A police spokesman said the situation was more contained Thursday than 
it has been since the weekend, when the police shooting of a teenager 
kicked off days of riots in Athens and across Greece.
"Of course there are sporadic clashes between students and police 
officials, but things are a scale or two lower than they were 
yesterday," police spokesman Panayiotes Stathis said. "There is a 
gradual deescalation and that's how we hope the situation will proceed."
Hundreds of students have refused to return to school and several of 
them protested Thursday at local police precincts. Several student 
groups staged sit-ins along 10 major streets in Athens, at 120 high 
schools across the country, and at 15 universities.
Students planned a protest for Friday in the center of Athens. Student 
unions in universities and high schools met throughout the day Thursday 
to decide their course of action for the coming days.
At the Athens Polytechnic University -- a major flashpoint with clashes 
between anarchists and police -- municipal crews were able to clear the 
streets for the first time in days. So much debris was in the streets 
from the protests that in some places it was half a foot deep.
Anarchists stopped the crews from clearing two streets and taking away 
burned-out vehicles, saying they wanted to use the cars for barricades 
in what they said would be street fights Thursday night. Watch how the 
unrest could cause a crisis »
The only major clash Thursday was outside the large Koyrdallos prison in 
Athens, where youths faced off violently with police.
Shopkeepers and businessmen seemed determined to reclaim their city from 
the protesters who have wreaked havoc and caused destruction across 
Athens. Since Wednesday, groups of merchants have been seen confronting 
hooded, masked youths involved in the protests, and even fighting with them.
The violence began Saturday after police officers fatally shot a 
15-year-old boy who had been throwing stones at their patrol car along 
with other youths.
The riots and protests soon became an outlet for simmering anger about 
the Greek economy, education, and jobs. The events are threatening the 
government's hold on power, with some opposition groups calling for 
fresh elections.
The two officers involved in Saturday's shooting were remanded into 
custody Wednesday pending trial. One is charged with premeditated 
manslaughter and the other with acting as an accomplice.
Their lawyer said Thursday that initial results from a ballistics test 
show the officer did not fire directly at the teen. Instead, the bullet 
ricocheted off another object before hitting the boy in the chest, 
attorney Alexis Kougias said.
The initial examination shows the bullet taken from the victim was 
scraped and deformed on one side, Kougias said. That indicates the 
bullet was one of two warning shots fired by police into the air, which 
then ricocheted and hit the boy.

Kougias said reports Wednesday that the ballistics test confirmed the 
ricochet theory were incorrect. The official report is expected later 
Thursday or on Friday.
Officials fear that if the ricochet theory pans out, it could inflame 
tensions and spark more riots.







http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/europe/news/article_1447933.php/Strong_rain_calms_down_Greek_protests

Strong rain calms down Greek protests
Europe News
Dec 12, 2008, 6:05 GMT
Athens - Police recorded the calmest night since the outbreak of 
violence after a fatal police shooting of a teenager last weekend, Greek 
state radio said Friday.
There were no reports of rioting during the night, the protests dampened 
by heavy rains falling across Greece.
The results of the ballistic examination of the bullet which killed 
15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos on Saturday are expected to be 
released Friday. The policeman who shot the boy remains in custody in a 
high-security prison in the Athens suburb Korydallos.
New student rallies were planned for Friday and Monday.
On Thursday evening about 4,000 students took to the streets again in 
Athens in a protest turing increasingly violent, as clashes occurred 
also in other Greek cities.
Analysts insist that violence was the result of long-simmering 
discontent with the government over a series of financial scandals and 
unpopular economic, pension and education reforms.
The shooting of was seen as the last straw by many young Greeks, whose 
economic future is bleak in a country with a high unemployment rate and 
low wages.






http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2008-12-12-greece-riots_N.htm

Greeks riot for seventh day
Updated 12/12/2008 5:00 PM | Comments 16 | Recommend

By Petros Karadjias, AP

A riot policeman in Athens, chases a demonstrator on Friday.
ATHENS (AP) — Protesters took to the streets of Athens for the seventh 
consecutive day Friday, vowing to maintain pressure on the government 
with both peaceful demonstrations and violent clashes that left one 
police officer engulfed in flames.
Youths pelted riot police with rocks and firebombs. One officer flailed, 
covered in blazing gasoline, as his colleagues rushed to extinguish him. 
He was ultimately unhurt.
GREECE UNREST: Country plans prison release despite troubles
Demonstrators in France and Germany put on shows of support for the 
Greeks protests, which are driven in part by the widening gap between 
rich and poor in a country where the minimum monthly wage is $850, 
graduates have poor job prospects and the government is making painful 
reforms to the pension system.
"It is clear that this wave of discontent will not die down. This rage 
is spreading because the underlying causes remain," said veteran 
left-wing politician Leonidas Kyrkos. "These protests are a vehicle with 
which people can claim their rights and shatter indifference and false 
promises."
Beleaguered Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis ruled out early elections, 
however, saying from Brussels that the country needs a steady hand to 
steer it through the global financial crisis.
"That is my concern and the concern and the priority of the government, 
and not scenarios about elections and successions," he said.
"We must make a very clear distinction between the overwhelming majority 
of the Greek people who of course have every right to express their 
sorrow at the death of a young boy, and the minority of extremists who 
take refuge in acts of extreme violence."
Dozens of people have been treated in hospitals during the unrest, 
sparked last Saturday by the death of 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos.
The level of violence has abated but tear gas and the smoke from burned 
cars still hang in the air in central Athens. Hundreds of businesses 
have been burned or smashed and looted in cities across Greece. Banks in 
particular have been targeted, with terrified employees fleeing as 
protesters smashed recently replaced windows of branches along central 
Syntagma Square.
"Financial targets are being attacked, like banks, to prove a point of 
economic oppression ... some people hardly have enough eat," said 
Constantinos Sakkas, a 23-year-old protest organizer.
"We're against the attacks on small stores," he added. "The purpose of 
all this is for our demands to be heard. This just isn't for us. It's 
for everyone."
In Paris, about 300 demonstrators gathered outside the Greek Embassy. 
Some scuffled with police and spilled over onto the Champs-Elysees, 
partly blocking Paris' most famous avenue, some ripping out streetlights 
from the center of the road as they moved along.
"Police, pigs, everywhere!" they shouted, bemused bystanders in red 
Santa hats watching as police vans with and riot officers in helmets and 
shields marched down the avenue in their wake.
Outside the embassy, demonstrators shouted "Murderous Greek state!" and 
"A police officer, a bullet, that is social justice!"
Hundreds of protesters also marched through Berlin's Kreuzberg 
neighborhood, behind a van broadcasting messages of solidarity with the 
Greek protesters.
Earlier in the week, protesters in Spain, Denmark and Italy smashed shop 
windows, pelted police with bottles and attacked banks, while in France, 
cars were set ablaze outside the Greek consulate in Bordeaux, where 
protesters scrawled graffiti warning about a looming "insurrection."







Thursday DECEMBER 11

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24788986-12335,00.html

Athens hit by new protests
• Font Size: Decrease Increase
• Print Page: Print
 From correspondents in Athens | December 12, 2008
Article from: Agence France-Presse
POLICE clashed with demonstrators and groups of looters in Athens 
overnight as the Greek government confronted a sixth day of protests 
over the police killing of a schoolboy.
Demonstrators fought security forces outside the country's biggest 
prison and a university in central Athens while police said groups of 
youths attacked stores in several districts or blocked main roads.
Formal voluntary homicide charges against the police officer accused of 
shooting 15-year-old Andreas Grigoropoulos failed to stem public anger 
and Greek embassies in other countries have also become a target for 
protests. But under fire prime minister Costas Karamanlis went to a 
European Union summit in Brussels.
A clash at Koyrdallos prison in a western Athens suburb blew up after 
protesters threw rocks and other missiles at police who fired tear gas 
to force the protesters back, a prison guard said.
Demonstrators later staged a sitdown protest in front of the prison amid 
more confrontations with security forces.
Police said there was also unrest at the Athens agriculture university, 
which has been occupied by students, and that rampaging youths were 
attacking stores in the upmarket Nea Smyrni and Galatsi districts of the 
capital.
School students also blocked several main roads in Athens.
More than 100 schools and some 15 university campuses remain occupied by 
youth demonstrators in Athens and the second city of Thessaloniki, with 
student groups having announced a major rally for tomorrow.
Slogans such as "state killers", "murderers, you will pay", "democracy 
gives arms, cops assassinate" and "Silence only shows complicity" are 
splashed across banners hanging outside the elite Athens Polytechnic 
building.
About 400 people, mainly left wing activists, gathered for protest march 
on the Greek parliament today. A large number of security forces 
protected the building.
More than 1000 people took part in another march in the northern city of 
Thessaloniki.
Six days of unrest in cities across Greece since Grigoropoulos was 
fatally shot in Athens have left dozens of injured and scores of banks, 
stores and public buildings destroyed, badly damaged by fire, or looted.
Police have confronted riots every night since the death.
Athens police officer Epaminondas Korkoneas was charged yesterday with 
voluntary homicide - which under Greek law does not necessarily involve 
premeditation. Mr Korkoneas has claimed self defence with ballistics 
analysis indicating a ricochet bullet hit the schoolboy, lawyers said.
His partner, Vassilios Saraliotis, 31, was charged with being an 
accomplice and will also remain in custody.
Demonstrators and left wing unions have sought to focus the public anger 
against the right wing government, whose popularity has plummeted in 
recent months because of the economic crisis and a series of political 
scandals.
A general strike yesterday brought much of the country to a standstill 
and badly disrupted flights in and out of Greece.
The socialist opposition has also stepped up calls for Mr Karamanlis to 
quit and call new elections, ignoring his appeals for national unity 
against the worst unrest Greece has seen since the end of a military 
dictatorship in 1974.
Mr Karamanlis now faces intense domestic political pressure, with just a 
single seat majority in the Greek parliament.
Mr Korkoneas is accused of killing Grigoropoulos during a clash with 
around 30 youths in the Exarchia district of Athens. His lawyer said Mr 
Korkoneas claims self defence saying the group threw firebombs and other 
objects while shouting that they "were going to kill them".
The crisis has crossed borders, with Turkish left-wing protesters 
daubing red paint over the Greek consulate in Istanbul, and Greek 
embassies in Moscow and Rome also targets for firebombers.
In Spain, 11 demonstrators were arrested and several police officers 
injured during clashes in Madrid and Barcelona, while 32 people were 
arrested in Copenhagen when their protest in support of Greek rioters 
turned violent, police said.






http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7013375198

Athens Continues To Be Gripped By Violent Protests
ShareThis
December 11, 2008 3:15 p.m. EST

Julie Farby - AHN Reporter
Athens, Greece (AHN) - Protesters entered their sixth day of 
demonstrations in Athens on Thursday, protesting the fatal shooting of 
15-year-old Alexis Grigoropoulos who was shot by police on Saturday.
Athens has been gripped by protests, many of which have turned violent, 
in an effort to bring attention to police brutality in light of the 
economic difficulties facing Greece.
37-year-old Epaminondas Korkoneas, the police officer accused of 
shooting the teenager, has been charged with voluntary homicide and 
"illegal use" of his service weapon, and was ordered to remain in 
custody by an Athens court.
During his questioning, Korkoneas said he had acted out of self defense 
when a group of youths began throwing firebombs and other objects while 
threatening to kill him and his partner. His lawyer also defended his 
client's actions, saying, the bullet which killed Grigoropoulos showed 
signs of having bounced off a hard surface, indicating that the boy was 
killed as a result of an accidental ricochet.
According to the Athens Chamber of Commerce said 435 businesses had been 
hit during the violence, with 37 completely gutted, estimating the 
damage at GBP 44 million (50 million euros).
The conservative daily newspaper Kathimerini said the trouble gripping 
Greece was a result of long-time neglect. "This is a country with a 
state that is in a shambles, a police force in disarray, mediocre 
universities that serve as hotbeds of rage instead of knowledge and a 
shattered health care system. It is also on the brink of financial ruin."






http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/12/415099.html

General strike, spreading protests rock Greek government
Chris Marsden | 11.12.2008 17:01 | World
Yesterday's one-day general strike paralysed much of Greece, while 
10,000 marched in Athens against the right-wing government of Prime 
Minister Costas Karamanlis.

Flights were halted by the walkout of air traffic controllers, and the 
country's public transport network was largely shut down. Railways, 
metro and bus lines, and coach services ground to a halt. Schools, banks 
and hospitals were also affected.

There were battles between police and youth on the main demonstration as 
well as outside the central courthouse where two officers involved in 
the fatal shooting of student Alexandros Grigoropoulos were testifying. 
High school students chanted "Cops! Pigs! Murderers!" Riot police fired 
tear gas at demonstrators advancing on the parliament building in 
Athens. Many shops stayed closed and boarded up their windows.

A group of around 100 Roma attacked a police station in the suburb of 
Zefyri. Clashes broke out during demonstrations in Thessaloniki, Kavala 
and Patrus. Two universities in Athens remain occupied. University 
teachers have been on strike since December 8 and high school and 
primary school teachers have struck since December 9.

In Athens, officials estimate that more than 200 stores, 50 banks and 
many cars have been damaged. The Athens Traders Association estimates 
that the previous four days of rioting have caused €1 billion ($1.3 
billion) in damages.

Stathis Anestis, spokesman for a federation of private sector unions, 
said, "Participation in the strike is total. The country has come to a 
standstill."

The strike was scheduled some time ago by the Greek General 
Confederation of Workers (GSEE) and the Civil Servants Supreme 
Administrative Council (ADEDY), representing 2.5 million workers—half 
the Greek workforce. It was called to press demands for higher wages, 
pensions and social spending and to protest austerity measures. But it 
has become bound together with the massive popular reaction to the 
killing of Grigoropoulos, which has become a focus for widespread anger 
toward both the police and the Karamanlis government.

Karamanlis and the New Democrats are hanging onto office by a single 
seat in the 300-member parliament. His government has agreed to give €28 
billion to the bankers, while cutting social services and pensions and 
forcing through privatizations. He has blamed the protests on the 
"enemies of democracy" and said there will be no leniency for the rioters.

Amnesty International has called for the Greek authorities to end the 
"unlawful and disproportionate use of force by police" and noted 
"mounting evidence of police beatings and ill-treatment of peaceful 
demonstrators."

The leader of the opposition Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK), 
George Papandreou, has called for early elections, but he has done so on 
the grounds that the government has proven incapable of defending the 
public from protesters. "This government is unable to protect the public 
from anarchy," he said.

The Central Committee of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) also 
denounced "the blind violence of the hooded people." One Communist Party 
leader accused the opposition Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA), 
made up of various dissident Stalinist and radical groups, of 
"indulging" the anarchists.

Fresh elections would have the aim of stabilizing a situation that is 
spiralling out of control. With unemployment at 15 percent, forcing many 
to emigrate in search of work, social anger, especially amongst the 
young, is visceral.

Zoe Albani, a psychologist and youth counsellor at the IEKEP institute, 
told the Guardian, "There's so much frustration among the young people, 
so much anger, rage. So many dreams that can't be realized. If any of 
them get a job, they earn €500 a month. You can't live on that. By the 
time they're 26 or 27, they're still living at home. You want to have 
kids, but you can't afford to."

Christos Kittas, who resigned as dean of Athens University after the 
rioting spread to campuses, told the Independent, "Everyone has let our 
children down. Every day, I see that students are becoming more hostile 
toward us and towards figures of authority."

Odysseas Korakidis, who took part in the Athens protest, told Reuters, 
"There is demand for change: social, economic and political change. It's 
not unusual here to hold down two jobs to get just 800 or 1,000 euros a 
month. In other countries, that's inconceivable!"

"This is not just about the kids. It's about our dreadful education and 
economic situation. That's what pushed us onto the streets," one 
protester said. "It's our belief and hope that this is the beginning of 
a rebellion against the system."

A young woman told the Guardian, "I have two degrees but I am a 
waitress. There is no opportunity for young people here any more but I 
don't think this is confined to Greece. The economic situation leaves a 
lot of young people across Europe feeling bleak and hopeless."

More is at stake than even the stability of Greece. Several commentators 
in the British media have looked at the events of the past week and seen 
the shape of things to come elsewhere in Europe.

The Guardian's Ian Traynor wrote, "As Europe heads into a winter of 
discontent, the bonfires of Athens could signal the first outbreaks of 
mass rage against the hard times beginning to feed fear and frustration 
across the continent."

He cited Thanos Dokos, the director of a leading foreign policy think 
tank in Athens, who explained, "People are frightened about job losses, 
rising taxes, no wage rises. The middle and lower classes are exhausted."

Ambrose Evans-Pritchard wrote in the Telegraph, "The crisis is much 
further advanced in Spain, which is a year or two ahead of Greece in the 
crisis cycle... The picture is going to get very ugly as Europe slides 
deeper into recession next year. The IMF expects Spain's unemployment to 
reach 15 percent. Immigrants are already being paid to leave the 
country. There will be riots in Spain too [there have been street 
skirmishes in Barcelona]. No doubt events will be ugly in Britain as well."

More politically revealing still, the Guardian warned not only of the 
impact of recession, but also the widening gulf between rich and poor in 
fuelling political and social unrest. It editorialized, "It would be one 
thing if everyone was suffering equally. But, of course, there are some 
people in Greece doing very well indeed, including those with 
connections to a government with a string of scandals, some of them 
financial, behind it...

"The more general lesson of these troubles is that unless governments 
are more attuned to the difficulties faced by their citizens, and 
particularly their younger citizens, they may well face similar but much 
worse times in the future, as the recession begins to bite. Greece's 
difficulties are not a product of the recession, the major impact of 
which is yet to come in that country. But that does not mean they are 
not a sort of model of what might happen elsewhere if governments go 
into the recession without a new emphasis on equality."
Chris Marsden
Homepage: http://www.wsws.org






http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/12/10/greece.riots/index.html?eref=rss_topstories

December 11, 2008 -- Updated 0656 GMT (1456 HKT)

Clashes, strike shut down Athens
• Story Highlights
• Greek protesters clash with riot police at demonstrations in Athens
• Nationwide strike taking place amid unrest over police shooting of 
teenager
• Banks, schools, and hospitals closed; public transport in Athens halted
• Lawyer for officers accused over shooting says boy, 15, was killed by 
ricochet

ATHENS, Greece (CNN) -- The Greek government was struggling to bring 
violent protests under control Wednesday, five days after they were 
sparked by the police killing of a teenager.

Riot police face protesters in Athens Wednesday as debris burns in the 
streets.

Athens announced aid for small businesses but demonstrators continued to 
stage standoffs and riots in the Greek capital, while workers held a 
long-planned strike in one of the city's main squares.
Greek police confronted protesters outside the parliament building after 
days of rioting that have brought the city to a standstill and 
threatened the government's hold on power.
A lawyer for the officers accused of killing the teenager said Wednesday 
that a ballistics test showed the policeman had not fired directly at 
the 15-year-old.
The bullet ricocheted off another object before hitting Alexandros 
Grigoropoulos in the chest, attorney Alex Kougias said.
The family of the boy, who was buried Tuesday, has called in its own 
investigators to verify state findings, the Athens coroner told CNN. 
Watch crowds gather for the funeral »
The shooting happened in a restive Athens neighborhood after six young 
protesters pelted a police patrol car with stones. Grigoropoulos was 
shot as he tried to throw a fuel-filled bomb at the officers, police said.
Striking union members condemned what they called "the cold-blooded 
murder of the young Alexander," as they demanded higher wages, a ban on 
mass layoffs by companies receiving government assistance, and the 
doubling of government funding for education, health and welfare programs.
Meanwhile, the mayor of Athens appealed for calm along with help in 
returning the city to normal, while the government released a statement 
saying everyone bears responsibility for restoring order.
So far, however, the Greek leadership has appeared unable to quell the 
violence and there is growing pressure on the government to resign. 
Watch how the unrest could cause a crisis »
Saturday's shooting, which sparked the riots, was only one reason for 
the days of unrest. Many Greeks were already angry over how the 
government was run, allegations of corruption, the state of the economy 
and a lack of jobs.
Protesters outside parliament hurled stones and projectiles, some of 
them on fire, at a line of police dressed in green uniforms, white 
helmets, and armed with shields. The police occasionally advanced but 
did not respond.
But the violence then spread to other areas, with students responsible 
for much of the disorder, according to Achilles Popas, a reporter for 
Greek station Skai TV. The students hurled petrol bombs and caused a lot 
of damage in the city center, where shattered glass covered the ground, 
Popas told CNN.
Police responded by using tear gas, Popas said. They appeared to be 
trying to keep their distance from the protesters but the clashes 
continued, he added.
Wednesday's strike went ahead despite a plea from Prime Minister Kostas 
Karamanlis to hold off amid the violence.
Banks, schools, and hospitals were closed and transportation was at a 
halt with urban buses and the Athens subway shut. Many local and 
international flights were canceled.
Karamanlis condemned the "destructive fury and brutal violence" of the 
protesters.
"The rioters, with their acts, once again, demonstrated that the only 
thing that inspires them is the destruction," the prime minister said in 
a statement. "They have targeted social peace, the rule of law, and 
democracy itself. That is why they are isolated."
Karamanlis said the violence has affected businesses, especially small 
ones already suffering from the economic downturn. He announced a series 
of measures to help merchants recover, including reimbursement for 
losses, direct financial assistance, 15-year loans, and suspended debts.
Athens Mayor Nikita Kaklamani asked all Athens residents to buy 
something from the shops as a symbolic show of support.
"The city wants a smile, it wants hope. We will provide it, because this 
must be Athens' fate," the mayor said in a statement. "We will defend 
its history, its cultural heritage, the fortunes of our fellow citizens 
and, above all, human lives."
In his statement, Karamanlis said the government was acting responsibly 
and he called on all political parties to work together.
Greek Foreign Minister Dora Bakogiannis tried to spread the blame for 
the broad dissatisfaction.

"The central responsibility of managing a difficult crisis undoubtedly 
remains with the elected government of a land," Bakogiannis said in a 
statement issued Wednesday. "However, I would like to stress no one is 
without responsibility, (including) political parties and institutions. 
A share of the responsibility for order, the city's economic life, 
remains with us all."
Opposition leaders have blasted the government amid the unrest. The 
leader of the left-wing opposition party SYRIZA has called for 
protesters to topple the government, but Karamanlis ruled out early 
elections.







http://www.voanews.com/english/archive/2008-12/2008-12-12-voa1.cfm?CFID=156071694&CFTOKEN=44240405&jsessionid=843010986be2ca2478207163546325327326

Greek Riot Police Uses Tear Gas Against Protesters in Athens
By VOA News
12 December 2008


A rioter stands in a cloud of tear gas during clashes between protesters 
and police in central Athens, 11 Dec 2008
Protesters in central Athens late Thursday threw stones at Greek riot 
police who retaliated with tear gas.

There were reports of looting as violence across Greece, triggered by a 
police shooting of a teenager, continued for a sixth day.

Rage over the killing turned into anger over corruption and economic 
hardship, shaking the conservative government of Prime Minister Costas 
Kamaranlis, which has a one-seat majority in parliament.

Mr. Karamanlis and opposition socialist leader George Papandreou have 
issued pleas for calm.

Scores of protesters and police in Athens and the northern city of 
Salonika have been injured since Saturday, when a 15-year-old boy was 
killed by police gunfire in Athens' central Exarchia district.

Protests have spread beyond Greece's borders, with demonstrations in 
other European cities, including Berlin, London, Copenhagen, Rome and 
The Hague.

Spanish youths attacked banks and police stations in Madrid and 
Barcelona. There were no reports of serious injuries.

The two Athens policemen involved in the shooting have been jailed 
pending trial. One faces murder charges while the second is accused as 
an accomplice.

The officers say they were only firing warning shots. Their lawyers say 
initial forensic analysis shows the boy was hit by a ricochet, and not a 
direct shot as some witnesses have said.

In a televised statement Wednesday, Prime Minister Karamanlis promised 
wide-ranging aid to help the more than 400 businesses damaged in the 
rioting.






http://www.thedailystar.net/story.php?nid=66711

Published On: 2008-12-12
International
Riots and looting across Athens amid protests
Afp, Athens

Demonstrators block a road near Athens' Polytechnic on Dec 10. Greek 
union chiefs hailed a "massive turnout" of public and private sector 
workers for a long-planned general strike on Wednesday, as the country 
reeled from days of rioting over the killing of an Athens schoolboy. 
Photo: AFP
Riots and looting erupted across Athens yesterday as the Greek 
government confronted a sixth day of violent protests over the police 
killing of a schoolboy.

Demonstrators clashed with security forces outside the country's biggest 
prison and a university in central Athens while police said groups of 
youths were reported to be looting stores in various districts. Others 
blocked main roads.

Formal voluntary homicide charges against the police officer accused of 
shooting 15-year-old Andreas Grigoro-poulos failed to stem the public 
anger. Underfire prime minister Costas Karamanlis still left for a 
European Union summit in Brussels, while Greek embassies in other 
countries have also become a target for protests.

A clash at Koyrdallos prison in a western Athens suburb blew up after 
protesters started throwing rocks and other missiles at police who fired 
tear gas to force the protesters back, a prison guard said.

The demonstrators were staging a sitdown protest in front of the prison.

Police said there was a second riot at the agriculture university in 
Athens, which has been occupied by students, and that rampaging youths 
were looting stores in the Nea Smyrni and Galatsi districts of the capital.

School students also blocked several main roads in Athens.






http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/552196

Thousands of Greek students march in protest

AP PHOTO
A firebomb thrown by rioters explodes in front of police near the 
National Technical University in Athens, Dec. 10, 2008.
Dina Kyriakidou
REUTERS NEWS AGENCY

ATHENS – Protesters hurled fire bombs at riot police, who answered with 
teargas, as 4,000 Greek students marched on Thursday in a sixth straight 
day of anti-government violence.
Riots across Greece, triggered by the police shooting of a teenager but 
fuelled by deep popular anger over corruption and economic hardship, 
have shaken the conservative government.
"Down with the government of murderers," read demonstrators' banners. 
Marchers chanted "Cops, Pigs, Murderers" in the latest spasm of Greece's 
worst unrest since the aftermath of its 1967-1974 military rule.
Helicopters hovered overhead as the protesters set fire to piles of 
garbage in the middle of deserted Athens avenues.
The violence was less intense then in previous days, but more protests 
were planned for Friday and Monday and some Greeks asked how much longer 
the government could remain in power.
"The government has shown it cannot handle this. If police start 
imposing the law, everyone will say the military junta is back," said 
Yannis Kalaitzakis, 49, an electrician. "The government is stuck between 
a rock and a hard place."
Earlier in the day, gangs of Greek high school students hurled stones 
and fire bombs at police stations in Athens suburbs. Violence has hit at 
least 10 cities and caused damage worth hundreds of millions of euros.
Data released on Thursday showed that economic hardship is hitting more 
Greeks. Unemployment, especially high among young people and women, rose 
to 7.4 percent in September from 7.1 in August, reversing four years of 
decline, and economists said it would keep climbing as the global crisis 
reached Greece.
"Our priority is to help social groups that are most in need and protect 
jobs," Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis said in Brussels, where he is 
attending an EU summit.
SPREADS WIDEN
In bond markets, the spread between Greek debt and German benchmark 
bonds – a measure of perceived risk – reached its widest point this 
decade, nearly 2 percentage points, amid fears of further upheaval. "We 
... do not expect investors to forget this situation quickly," said 
David Keeble, head of fixed income research at Calyon Bank.
Many Greeks were angry that the 37-year-old policeman charged with 
murdering Alexandros Grigoropoulos, 15, did not express remorse to 
investigators on Wednesday. He said he fired warning shots in 
self-defence which ricocheted.
"Pouring petrol on the flames," said Ethnos newspaper.
Epaminondas Korkoneas and his work partner, who is charged as an 
accomplice, were sent to jail pending trial by a prosecutor on 
Wednesday. Cases often take months to reach court.
Greeks also protested in Paris, Berlin, London, Rome, The Hague, Moscow, 
New York, Italy and Cyprus. Attacks on a police station and bank by 
Spanish youths in Madrid and Barcelona also fuelled concern about 
copy-cat protests.
While the Greek government, which has a one-seat majority in parliament, 
appeared to have weathered the immediate storm, its hands-off response 
to the rioting will damage its already low popularity ratings, pollsters 
said. The opposition socialist party, which leads in the polls, has 
called for an election.
"The most likely scenario now is that Karamanlis will call elections in 
two or three months' time," said Georges Prevelakis, professor of 
geopolitics at the Sorbonne in Paris.
On Wednesday, hundreds of thousands of Greeks joined the strike to 
protest against privatisations, tax rises and pension reform. Many 
people, especially the fifth of Greeks who live below the poverty line, 
feel badly hit as the global downturn affects the 240 billion euro ($315 
billion) economy.
The Greek Commerce Confederation said the riot damage to businesses in 
Athens alone was about 200 million euros, with 565 shops wrecked.
Karamanlis, who swept to power during the euphoria of the 2004 Athens 
Olympics, announced subsidies and tax relief measures for those 
affected, but shopkeepers were indignant.
"I don't care if and when they are going to give me money, l care about 
getting the shop running again," said clothing shop owner, Michael 
Bernelos. "I don't want mercy or handouts."
In four years of conservative rule, a series of scandals, devastating 
forest fires and unsuccessful economic measures have erased the 
optimistic mood of 2004.






http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/greece/3706849/Greek-protest-spread-with-arrests-across-Europe.html

Journalists came under attack for the first time in the riots, with a 
Russian news crew assaulted by a mob of about 50 youths, some of them 
reportedly drunk.
A correspondent and a cameraman for Russian television channel NTV were 
injured in the confrontation, which happened while they filmed clashes 
in Exarchia, a crucible of student radicalism.
In Athens, around 40 youths threw stones at riot police near university 
buildings in the volatile Exarchia district where 15-year-old Alexis 
Grigoropoulos was shot dead on Saturday.
They were met with volleys of tear gas and three arrests were made, 
police said. Overnight, students hurling petrol bombs and stones again 
battled riot police in Athens, in a continuation of the worst riots to 
have hit Greece in more than 30 years.
There were similar clashes in the northern city of Thessaloniki, where 
more than 80 shops and 14 banks were damaged, with students continuing 
to occupy university campuses.
Despite the turmoil that has rocked Greece since Grigoropoulos was 
killed, embattled Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis said he would fly to 
Brussels to attend a European Union summit. His conservative government 
has a parliamentary majority of just one seat.
Corruption scandals and attempts at economic reform have made Mr 
Karamanlis' administration deeply unpopular, but he has so far resisted 
calls to resign and call early elections.
Epaminondas Korkoneas, 37, the police officer accused of shooting the 
teenager, has been charged with voluntary homicide and "illegal use" of 
his service weapon. He was ordered to remain in custody by an Athens 
magistrate.
His partner, Vassilios Saraliotis, 31, was charged with being an 
accomplice and will also remain in custody. The pair have been held 
since Sunday.
Under questioning by a magistrate, Mr Korkoneas said he had acted out of 
self defence when a group of youths began throwing firebombs and other 
objects while threatening to kill him and his partner.
His lawyer said the bullet which killed Grigoropoulos showed signs of 
having bounced off a hard surface, indicating that the boy was killed as 
a result of an accidental ricochet.
Greece has a history of clashes between the police and left-wing, 
anarchist groups.
A student uprising in 1973 helped bring an end to the country's military 
dictatorship a year later.
But the scale of this week's violence has left the country in deep shock 
as Greeks count the cost of the destruction.
The Athens Chamber of Commerce said 435 businesses had been hit during 
the violence, with 37 completely gutted, estimating the damage at GBP 44 
million (50 million euros).
Under the headline "Greece in self-destruct mode" the conservative daily 
newspaper Kathimerini said in an editorial: "This is a country with a 
state that is in a shambles, a police force in disarray, mediocre 
universities that serve as hotbeds of rage instead of knowledge and a 
shattered health care system. It is also on the brink of financial ruin."






http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/protesters-run-riot-for-a-fifth-day/2008/12/11/1228584967248.html

Protesters run riot for a fifth day in Greece
Paola Totaro
December 11, 2008

Greek rioters vent their anger in Athens.
Photo: AP

Greece succumbed to violence for the fifth day running as 10,000 
anti-Government protesters took to the streets of central Athens, while 
a 24-hour strike shut down the nation's banks and schools, stopped 
public transport and paralysed the international airport.
The union organised rally and strike - planned weeks ago in a bid to 
pressure the government for greater financial support for low income 
families - was marred by youths throwing Molotov cocktails and rocks and 
the use of tear gas to disperse the groups
The demonstration, against the centre right government's conservative 
fiscal policies, became enveloped by the fury unleashed by the shooting 
of a 15-year-old boy at the hands of police on Saturday night.
Also on Wednesday, lawyers representing the officer charged with the 
boy's manslaughter unleashed a new wave of anger after arguing that a 
ballistics report suggested the boy was struck by a ricochet from a 
warning shot, not by a direct hit.
The death of Alexandros Grigiropoulos in central Athens during an 
altercation between youths and a police squad car sparked a wave of 
civil unrest and violence that has not been matched since the anarchic 
battles of the early 1970s.
The young boy, the son of a banker, was buried on Tuesday, and while his 
funeral was attended by 6000 mourners and passed relatively peacefully, 
clashes broke out once again after the ceremony and tear gas was used to 
disperse the warring groups.
The Times in London reported that the ballistics and forensic reports 
from the incident have yet to be published, but apparently state that 
the bullet was deformed and could have hit something else or been 
deflected before killing the boy. However, the coroner has reportedly 
insisted that this does not rule out conclusively a direct hit.
Flights to and from Athens international airport have been cancelled and 
public hospitals across Greece were operating with a skeleton staff.
Observers reported that the confrontations nevertheless appear to be 
lessening, leaving scenes of devastation in Athens's centre as hundreds 
of shop and small business owners try to clean up the damage and assess 
their losses. To date, the bill for damage and looted and stolen goods 
is estimated at a staggering €1 billion.
The Mayor of Athens, Nikitas Kaklamanis, has held emergency talks with 
the Government and asked for special low interest, long pay off loans to 
give the small business owners a helping hand.
"I asked the prime minister to make available an interest-free loan with 
a two-year grace period and pa-yoff period of between 10 and 15 years," 
he said after a meeting with Kostas Karamanlis.
Mr Karamanlis, whose centre right government holds power by just one 
parliamentary seat, has been besieged by his own cabinet to give the 
police greater powers. Police ability to respond to civil unrest was 
greatly curtailed in the wake of the anarchic protests of the 1970s - 
and the socialist government that came afterwards, in the 1980s.
The outbreak of violence has split the Greek media with some arms 
arguing the protesters were simply bored, middle class youths with too 
much time on their hands and others who have blatantly attacked the 
police as "murderers".






http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/12/11/greece.riots/index.html?eref=rss_latest

December 12, 2008 -- Updated 1112 GMT (1912 HKT)

ATHENS, Greece (CNN) -- Athens was mostly calm Thursday, allowing many 
Athenians to return to work for the first time in days, but protesters 
warned they were preparing themselves for street fights after nightfall.

Municipality workers clean the streets around Athens Polytechnic Thursday.

A police spokesman said the situation was more contained Thursday than 
it has been since the weekend, when the police shooting of a teenager 
kicked off days of riots in Athens and across Greece.
"Of course there are sporadic clashes between students and police 
officials, but things are a scale or two lower than they were 
yesterday," police spokesman Panayiotes Stathis said. "There is a 
gradual deescalation and that's how we hope the situation will proceed."
Hundreds of students have refused to return to school and several of 
them protested Thursday at local police precincts. Several student 
groups staged sit-ins along 10 major streets in Athens, at 120 high 
schools across the country, and at 15 universities.
Students planned a protest for Friday in the center of Athens. Student 
unions in universities and high schools met throughout the day Thursday 
to decide their course of action for the coming days.
At the Athens Polytechnic University -- a major flashpoint with clashes 
between anarchists and police -- municipal crews were able to clear the 
streets for the first time in days. So much debris was in the streets 
from the protests that in some places it was half a foot deep.
Anarchists stopped the crews from clearing two streets and taking away 
burned-out vehicles, saying they wanted to use the cars for barricades 
in what they said would be street fights Thursday night. Watch how the 
unrest could cause a crisis »
The only major clash Thursday was outside the large Koyrdallos prison in 
Athens, where youths faced off violently with police.
Shopkeepers and businessmen seemed determined to reclaim their city from 
the protesters who have wreaked havoc and caused destruction across 
Athens. Since Wednesday, groups of merchants have been seen confronting 
hooded, masked youths involved in the protests, and even fighting with them.
The violence began Saturday after police officers fatally shot a 
15-year-old boy who had been throwing stones at their patrol car along 
with other youths.
The riots and protests soon became an outlet for simmering anger about 
the Greek economy, education, and jobs. The events are threatening the 
government's hold on power, with some opposition groups calling for 
fresh elections.
The two officers involved in Saturday's shooting were remanded into 
custody Wednesday pending trial. One is charged with premeditated 
manslaughter and the other with acting as an accomplice.
Their lawyer said Thursday that initial results from a ballistics test 
show the officer did not fire directly at the teen. Instead, the bullet 
ricocheted off another object before hitting the boy in the chest, 
attorney Alexis Kougias said.
The initial examination shows the bullet taken from the victim was 
scraped and deformed on one side, Kougias said. That indicates the 
bullet was one of two warning shots fired by police into the air, which 
then ricocheted and hit the boy.

Kougias said reports Wednesday that the ballistics test confirmed the 
ricochet theory were incorrect. The official report is expected later 
Thursday or on Friday.
Officials fear that if the ricochet theory pans out, it could inflame 
tensions and spark more riots.






http://www.nowpublic.com/world/despite-lull-violence-greek-protests-continue

Despite lull in violence, Greek protests continue
Share:
by Teacher Dude | December 10, 2008 at 11:27 pm

The unprededented wave of protests and discontent that has hit Greece 
since Saturday shows no sign of abating. Although the country enjoyed 
relative calm last night after days of rioting, high school and 
university students are planning to block roads in Athens today. In 
addition at least 100 high schools are under occupation, as well as the 
universities in many cities in protest against the shooting of 15 year 
old Alexandros Grigoropoulos by a police officer in central Athens.
Yesterday students some as young as twelve clashed with riot police in 
the northern port city of Thessaloniki. The central police station in 
Aristotelous square came under repeated attack from stone throwing 
teenagers who also set fire to rubbish bins and smashed shop windows.
The Greek government has announced a series of measures to help the 
hundreds of businesses damaged during the riots. Estimates over the cost 
of disturbances rangge from a three hundred to one billion euros. 
However, the opposition PASOK party has expressed skepticism over the 
government's plans to help pointing out that similar promises were made 
to those who lost homes in last year's devastating forest fires yet not 
kept.
The two policemen accused of killing the teenager claim that the fatal 
shot was a ricochet and that the officer who fired had shot into the air 
in order to scare off a gang of thirty youths who previously attacked 
them with rocks and bottles.
The defendents also said in their testimony that the dead student had 
been expelled from several schools and involved in incidents of football 
hooliganism.
However, several eye witnesses interviewed on Greek TV argue that there 
were no more than ten youths at the time of the incident and just one 
bottle was thrown at the defendent's patrol car. They also claim that 
the officer aimed his pistol directly at the group and fired and after 
Grigoropoulos fell to the ground walked away.
Friends and family of the teenager also denied categorically the 
accusations concerning the child's supposedly troubled academic career 
and alleged involvement in football violence.
The Greek police federation condemned the the actions of the two 
officers, calling the death a "horrific criminal act".
On the other hand defence lawyer Alexis Kougias, who took on the case 
other two other lawyers withdrew, claimed that there had been a 
"misunderstanding" and that foresenic evidence bore out his client's 
claim that the death was the result of bullet ricocheting. The results 
of the ballistics analysis of the bullets fired have, however, not been 
released yet.








Wednesday DECEMBER 10



http://www.roguegovernment.com/news.php?id=13208

Protests/Riots Continue In Greece Published on 12-10-2008 Email To 
Friend Print Version

Source: IHT

The Greek government on Wednesday defended its response to the crisis 
that has gripped the country since a teenager was fatally shot in a 
police confrontation last weekend, saying that officials in Athens had 
chosen not to crack down on a violent minority in an effort to avoid 
further bloodshed.
Even as new clashes erupted during a general strike that disrupted 
transport, schools and other services across Greece, a government 
spokesman said that he expected the crisis to tail off.
"I think it's going to fade out," said Panos Livadas, general secretary 
of the Information Ministry. "I think reason will prevail. I also think 
we will keep on doing our best not to have a future risk of innocent 
life. No more innocent blood. It's O.K. if we have to wait a day or two."
The statement coincided with an offer by Prime Minister Kostas 
Karamanlis to compensate shopkeepers whose premises have been damaged in 
the riots that have swept Greece since Saturday, when the police shot 
and killed Alexandros Grigoropoulos, 15.
Tensions remained high Wednesday in Athens and other big cities. 
Fighting erupted outside Parliament, where several thousand 
demonstrators had gathered to mark the general strike, and outside the 
main courthouse in the capital, where two police officers involved in 
the shooting that started the riots were testifying behind closed doors. 
The riot police reacted by firing tear gas as youths threw rocks and 
gasoline bombs.
Meanwhile, Alexis Cougias, an attorney for the police officers, said 
that a ballistics examination showed that Grigoropoulos was killed by a 
ricochet and not a direct shot, The Associated Press reported. One of 
the officers had claimed he had fired warning shots and did not shoot 
directly at the boy.
There was no comment from prosecutors, who do not make public statements 
on cases in the courts.
The general strike Wednesday was a new blow to the government after four 
days of violent protests. Airports were severely affected by the strike 
as air traffic controllers walked out. Scores of international and local 
flights were grounded, the state news media reported. Railways, subways, 
bus lines and intercity coach services were halted.
But while labor unions went ahead with the national strike, they called 
off a planned demonstration in an effort to help limit the disorder that 
has unfurled. Dozens of people have been arrested over the four days of 
rioting as protesters fought with the police and rampaged in Athens and 
other cities.
The general strike was originally called to press economic demands for 
increased pay and to protest belt-tightening measures put forward by the 
government. But the anti-government movement acquired new impetus 
following the shooting Saturday.
While clashes between the police and students have been common in Greece 
for decades, the ferocity of the reaction to the boy's death took many 
in the country - and its government - by surprise. Outrage over the 
death was widespread, fueled by what experts said was frustration with 
unemployment and corruption in one of the European Union's consistently 
underperforming economies, a situation that has only been worsened by 
global recession.
It was expressed in violence in the streets by anarchists, who had been 
quiet for several years but seemed revived by the crisis. Karamanlis, 
hanging on to power in Parliament by only one vote, has seemed frozen, 
his government, once popular but now scandal-ridden, increasingly under 
pressure.
On Tuesday, bands of youths threw gasoline bombs and smashed shop 
windows in central Athens, as rioters battled the police here and in 
Salonika, Greece's second largest city. In the port of Patras, residents 
tried to protect their shops from rioters, while other rioters blocked 
the police station, the authorities said.
While widespread and violent, the protests Tuesday were seen as slightly 
smaller than those the day before, when after dark hundreds of professed 
anarchists broke the windows of upscale shops, banks and five-star 
hotels in central Athens and burned a large Christmas tree in the plaza 
in front of Parliament.
Street-cleaning trucks tackled the mess Tuesday in the shattered heart 
of Athens. Mayor Nikitas Kaklamanis advised Athenians not to drive into 
the city center and asked them to keep their trash indoors; rioters 
burned 160 big garbage containers in the streets on Monday night.
On Tuesday, the opposition leader, George Papandreou, a Socialist, 
renewed his call for early elections. But it remained unclear whether 
the riots would cause the government to fall or whether the stalemate 
would continue.
On Tuesday, as youths scuffled with the police outside Parliament, 
Karamanlis met with his cabinet council and opposition leaders in an 
effort to get their backing for security operations. But he seemed 
uncertain how to contain the disturbances. The authorities seem to fear 
that cracking down on the demonstrators may lead to other unintended 
deaths, provoking more rioting.
Asked why the riots had not been contained, a spokesman for the national 
police, Panayiotis Stathis, said "violence cannot be fought with violence."
But in a news conference, Karamanlis issued warnings somewhat stronger 
than his actions, saying there would be no leniency for rioters.
"No one has the right to use this tragic incident as an alibi for 
actions of raw violence, for actions against innocent people, their 
property and society as a whole, and against democracy," Karamanlis said 
after an emergency meeting with President Karolos Papoulias.
Karamanlis faced criticism for not acting with a stronger hand earlier, 
with some suggesting that this gave credibility to the rioters' anger.
"They chose to show tolerance, which backfired," said Nikos Kostandaras, 
the editor of Kathimerini, a daily newspaper. The riots, he added, "were 
radicalizing every sector of the population."
Meg Bortin contributed from Paris.












http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2008/12/11/2003430817

Protesters throw fire bombs on day four of Greek riots

AGENCIES, ATHENS
Thursday, Dec 11, 2008, Page 1
Protesters threw fire bombs at police outside parliament yesterday 
during a general strike that paralyzed Greece and piled pressure on a 
conservative government reeling from the worst riots in decades.
“Government murderers!” demonstrators shouted, furious at the shooting 
of a teenager by police on Saturday that has sparked four days of 
violence fueled by simmering public anger at political scandals, rising 
unemployment and poverty.

Witnesses said the officer who fired the shot took deliberate aim, but 
his lawyer said yesterday that a ballistics report showed the boy was 
killed by an accidental ricochet.

“The investigation shows it was a ricochet ... In the end, this was an 
accident,” lawyer Alexis Kougias said. The ballistics report has yet to 
be officially published.

Thousands marched on parliament in a union rally against economic and 
social policy, which quickly turned violent. Police fired teargas and 
protesters responded with stones, bottles and sticks, a witness said.

The opposition socialist party has said the government, which has a 
one-seat majority and trails in opinion polls, has lost the trust of the 
people and has called for elections.

“Participation in the strike is total, the country has come to a 
standstill,” said Stathis Anestis, spokesman for the GSEE union 
federation which called the 24-hour stoppage.

Foreign and domestic flights were grounded, banks and schools were shut, 
and hospitals ran on emergency services as hundreds of thousands of 
Greeks walked off the job.

Unions say privatizations, tax rises and pension reform have worsened 
conditions, especially for the one-fifth of Greeks who live below the 
poverty line, precisely at a time when the global downturn is hurting 
the country.

Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis, who swept to power amid the 
euphoria of the 2004 Athens Olympics, appealed to political leaders for 
unity and urged unions to cancel yesterday’s rally. But his requests 
were flatly rejected by the opposition.

“He and his government are responsible for the widespread crisis that 
the country, that Greek society is experiencing,” socialist party 
spokesman George Papakonstantinou said.

One policeman has been charged with murder over the shooting of 
Alexandros Grigoropoulos, but has said he only fired in warning. The 
officer was due to appear before investigators with his colleague, who 
has been charged as an accomplice.

Rioting at the teenager’s death began in Athens on Saturday and quickly 
spread to at least 10 cities across the country. Greeks also protested 
in Paris, Berlin, London, The Hague and Cyprus.

The riots, Greece’s worst unrest since the aftermath of military rule in 
1974, have caused more than 20 million euros (US$25.9 million) in damage 
in wrecked cars, torched shops and banks, insurers say.

At the last count across Greece, 108 people had been arrested — with one 
of the most graphic attacks by looting rioters involving swords and 
slingshots stolen from a weapons shop, police said.





http://www.economist.com/world/europe/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12756043&fsrc=rss

Riots in Greece
Anarchy in Athens
Dec 9th 2008 | ATHENS
 From Economist.com
Riots in Greece put pressure on the government of Costas Karamanlis

Reuters
GREECE prides itself on the robust quality of its democracy. Despite 
frustration at the number of traffic-choking demonstrations outside 
parliament every year—the reported average is two a week—politicians 
stress that modern Greeks’ enthusiasm for protesting underlines 
continuity with the golden age of ancient Athens.
Some demonstrations turn violent. Several times a year a group of hooded 
young men, who style themselves as “anarchists”, bring up the rear of a 
march. They carry metal bars and petrol bombs and ritual clashes with 
riot police ensue. Shop windows are smashed and tear gas fills Syntagma 
Square outside parliament for a few hours.
This week violence erupted on an unprecedented scale after Alexandros 
Grigoropoulos, a 15-year-old schoolboy, was shot dead by a policeman in 
Exarchia, a scruffy central district known as the anarchists’ home base, 
on Saturday December 6th. Shouting insults at passing patrol cars is a 
Saturday-night ritual for some young Athenians. But the last time police 
killed a teenager was in 1985. This time protests quickly spilled into 
main boulevards as anarchists torched cars, broke windows of shops 
decorated for Christmas and tossed petrol bombs inside. Beyond Athens 
demonstrators attacked police stations and government offices in a dozen 
cities.
By the evening of Tuesday, after four days of rioting, a respite still 
seemed far off. Hundreds of high-school students battled police after 
the teenager’s funeral in the Faliron suburb, while other protesters 
threw rocks at those on guard outside parliament. Appeals for calm by 
Costas Karamanlis, the Conservative prime minister, were ignored. Talks 
have failed between political leaders who were seeking a consensus to 
quell the unrest. George Papandreou, the Socialist opposition leader, 
has told Mr Karamanlis to resign and call a general election. 
“Effectively there is no government…we claim power,” he said.
Mr Karamanlis looks vulnerable. His New Democracy party controls just 
151 seats in the 300-member parliament and trails by 4-5 percentage 
points in opinion polls. The prime minister’s personal approval rating 
has stayed ahead of Mr Papandreou’s, but if civil disorder continues for 
much longer that will probably slide too. Retailers and families that 
run small businesses are the backbone of support for the Conservatives 
and they are furious over the failure of police to protect their 
property. Worse, the latest upheaval comes on top of anger directed 
towards the government over a series of financial scandals. While 
demonstrators rampaged outside, a parliamentary committee was hearing 
evidence this week about an illegal exchange of land by Vatopedi 
monastery on Mount Athos. Senior cabinet ministers are alleged to have 
swindled taxpayers out of an estimated 100m euros ($Xm) while lining 
their own pockets.
Mr Karamanlis’s biggest mistake has been to ignore social reform, in 
particular of education, health and policing. As the global economic 
slowdown starts to have an impact on the country young Greeks see their 
parents struggling to pay bills. If one cannot afford to study abroad, a 
Greek university offers poor quality tuition and, unless one's family 
can pull strings, few opportunities for getting a job afterwards. The 
unemployment rate for young graduates is 21%, compared with 8% for the 
whole workforce.
Weak policing has allowed the anarchists to flourish in Exarchia, which 
has become a haven for drug dealers and racketeers. Protesters have also 
exploited a constitutional loophole that bans police from entering a 
university campus. In the past few days demonstrators have regrouped 
behind barricades at the Athens Polytechnic and picked up fresh supplies 
of petrol bombs before venturing back on the streets.
Mr Karamanlis’s attempts to abolish “university asylum” two years ago 
failed because he could not attract the cross-party support needed to 
change the constitution. Another set of educational reforms collapsed 
because a majority of academics refused to raise teaching standards and 
submit themselves to peer reviews. As the demonstrators rampage through 
laboratories and lecture rooms, the professors, like the politicians, 
must wish that they had tried harder.






http://www.journalgazette.net/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081210/NEWS04/812100330/-1/NEWS09

Protesters urge head of Greece to resign
Associated Press
Advertisement


ATHENS, Greece – Masked youths and looters marauded through Greek cities 
for a fourth night Tuesday in response to the police shooting of a teenager.
The nightly scenes of burning street barricades, looted stores and 
overturned cars have threatened to topple the country’s increasingly 
unpopular conservative government, which faces mounting calls for Prime 
Minister Costas Karamanlis to resign.
Police fired tear gas at protesters after the funeral of 15-year-old 
Alexandros Grigoropoulos, who was laid to rest in an Athens burial 
attended by about 6,000 people.
Violence calmed before dawn today, but police were braced for more 
trouble later in the day when labor unions planned rallies during a 
nationwide strike called to protest the government’s economic policies.
The rioting – which has engulfed cities from Thessaloniki in the north 
to Corfu and Crete in the south – threatens the 52-year-old Karamanlis, 
who already faced growing dissatisfaction over financial and social 
reforms amid growing economic gloom.
Opposition Socialist leader George Papandreou called for early 
elections, charging the conservatives are incapable of defending the 
public from rioters.
“The government cannot handle this crisis and has lost the trust of the 
Greek people,” Papandreou said. “The best thing it can do is resign and 
let the people find a solution. ... We will protect the public.”
The call was echoed by protesters, who, though they have not voiced any 
particular policy goals, say they want Karamanlis out.
“It’s very simple – we want the government to fall. This boy’s death was 
the last straw for us,” Petros Constantinou, an organizer with the 
Socialist Workers Party, said in Athens. “This government wants the poor 
to pay for all the country’s problems – never the rich – and they keep 
those who protest in line using police oppression.”
Karamanlis, whose New Democracy party narrowly won re-election a year 
ago, has ignored the calls.






http://www.nation.co.ke/News/world/-/1068/500686/-/sduns9/-/index.html

Strike paralyses Greece as protesters step up pressure

A protester tries to escape from riot policemen during a demonstration 
in Athens on Tuesday 2008. Photo/REUTERS
Posted Wednesday, December 10 2008 at 18:05
ATHENS, Wednesday
Protesters threw fire bombs at police outside parliament today during a 
general strike which paralysed Greece and piled pressure on a 
conservative government reeling from the worst riots in decades.
“Government murderers!” demonstrators shouted, furious at the shooting 
of a teenager by police on Saturday which has sparked four days of 
violence fuelled by simmering public anger at political scandals, rising 
unemployment and poverty.
Witnesses said the officer who fired the shot took deliberate aim, but 
his lawyer said today that a ballistics report showed the boy was killed 
by an accidental ricochet.
“The investigation shows it was a ricochet ... In the end, this was an 
accident,” lawyer Alexis Kougias told Reuters. The ballistics report has 
not yet been officially published.
Ten cities
Riots have raged in at least 10 cities and the cost of damage to shops 
and businesses in Athens alone is estimated at about 200 million euros 
($259 million), the Greek Commerce Confederation said.
“In Athens, we had 565 shops suffering serious damage or being 
completely destroyed,” said Vassilis Krokidis, vice president of the 
federation.
Thousands marched on parliament today in a union rally at economic and 
social policy, which quickly turned violent. Police fired teargas and 
protesters responded with stones, bottles and sticks, a Reuters witness 
said.
The opposition socialist party has said the government, which has a 
one-seat majority and trails in opinion polls, has lost the trust of the 
people and has called for elections.
“Participation in the strike is total, the country has come to a 
standstill,” said Stathis Anestis, spokesman for the GSEE union 
federation which called the 24-hour stoppage.
Foreign and domestic flights were grounded, banks and schools were shut, 
and hospitals ran on emergency services as hundreds of thousands of 
Greeks walked off the job.
Unions say privatisations, tax rises and pension reform have worsened 
conditions, especially for the one-fifth of Greeks who live below the 
poverty line, precisely at a time when the global downturn is hurting 
the 240 billion euro economy.
“There is demand for change: social, economic and political change,” 
said Odysseas Korakidis, 25, who works two jobs. “It’s not unusual here 
to hold down two jobs to get just 800 or 1,000 euros a month. In other 
countries, that’s inconceivable!”
Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis, who swept to power amid the euphoria 
of the 2004 Athens Olympics, appealed to political leaders for unity and 
urged unions to cancel Wednesday’s rally. But his requests were flatly 
rejected by the opposition.
“He and his government are responsible for the widespread crisis that 
the country, that Greek society is experiencing,” said socialist party 
spokesman George Papakonstantinou.
One policeman has been charged with murder over the shooting of teenager 
Alexandros Grigoropoulos, but has said he only fired in warning. (Reuters)



http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/uncategorized/greek-police-clash-with-protesters-in-fifth-day-of-riots-lead_100129468.html

Greek police clash with protesters in fifth day of riots (Lead)
December 11th, 2008 - 12:19 am ICT by IANS -
Athens, Dec 10 (DPA) The police clashed with projectile-throwing 
demonstrators Wednesday during a nationwide strike that paralysed the 
country already crippled by a crisis after five days of the worst 
violence the country has seen in decades.More than 10,000 demonstrators 
yelling, “Down with the pigs,” and carrying black flags marched through 
a city landscape of burned and looted shops in Athens in a nationwide 
strike which quickly turned violent as mobs threw fire bombs and chunks 
of marble at the police.
The 24-hour general strike, called by the country’s two largest private 
and public sector unions, was held amid increasing tensions in the 
country after days and nights of violence triggered by police shooting 
dead a 15-year-old youth last Saturday in the bohemian Athens district 
of Exarchia.
Witnesses said the police officer deliberately aimed for the boy, but a 
ballistics report, not yet made public, showed Wednesday the boy was 
killed by an accidental ricochet.
Despite pleas from the officers of their innocence, clashes erupted at 
the main court house before the hearing for the two officers accused of 
the shooting.
Two people were injured when police chased after youths who were 
spraying the court house with firebombs.
The shooting sparked five days of violence across the country already 
discontented with the government over rising unemployment, scandals and 
poverty.
Hundreds of youths hurled fire bombs, bottles and stones at riot police 
on guard in front of parliament, who retaliated with tear gas. The 
clashes continued for several hours throughout the city centre.
The nationwide strike grounded all flights at Athens’ international 
airport, shut down banks and schools and paralysed bus, tram and metro 
services. Hospitals were operating on emergency staff.
Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis had asked opposition party leaders to 
unite in an effort to end the crisis and appealed to unions to cancel 
Wednesday’s rally. But no one was willing to compromise.
Instead, the main opposition Socialist party said the government, which 
has a one-seat majority in parliament, should resign saying it has lost 
the trust of the people.
Greece’s private-sector GSEE and public-sector ADEDY unions are 
protesting the government’s recent pension reforms, which raise the 
retirement age and cut back benefits.
The unions also oppose recent labour reforms, privatisations and 
tax-raising measures.
The two unions represent more than half of the country’s workforce of 5 
million.
Four successive nights of rioting and looting have left hundreds of 
cars, stores and buildings charred and gutted at least 10 cities across 
Greece and left many Athenians angry about the response of the 
government and police and their inability to stop the destruction.
The protests also spread abroad as the Greek embassies in London, 
Berlin, Paris and in Cyprus were occupied by demonstrators in the past 
few days.
Reports said rioters have damaged or destroyed more than 350 stores and 
200 banks in Athens, while 50 buildings were damaged by fires. Another 
100 stores were damaged in Thessaloniki. Damage is estimated in the 
millions of euros.
In the centre of Athens the majority of shops were shut for the day 
while in the popular areas of Plaka and Monastiraki they were devoid of 
tourists.
The government, which has seen its ratings fall sharply behind the main 
opposition Socialists, promised once again Wednesday to compensate 
businesses for the damage suffered, announcing loans, emergency 
subsidies and tax relief measures.
“The government is determined to safeguard citizens and to support all 
the businesses which have suffered damage,” Karamanlis said in a 
televised speech.
The prime minister had made similar promises when large parts of 
mainland Peloponnese suffered devastating forest fires more than a year 
ago. Residents in those areas hit by the devastating fires claim the 
government’s promises were never met.
The shooting of the teenager was seen as the last straw by many young 
Greeks whose economic future is bleak in a country with a high 
unemployment rate and low wages.
Unemployment is pegged at over 7 percent, and nearly 20 percent of 
Greeks live below the poverty line, earning less than 600 euros ($775) a 
month.
“Everyone appears to have let our children down. Students have become 
more hostile towards us and to figures of authority,” Christos Kittas 
said on resigning as the dean of Athens University after rioting spread 
to campuses.





http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,3865172,00.html?maca=en-rss-en-all-1573-rdf

Crime | 11.12.2008
Greek Youth Riot Outside Prison as Chaos Continues

Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Emotions continue to 
run high in Greece
Young Greeks armed with rocks and firebombs continued to clash with 
police in Athens. Elsewhere in Europe, protestors burned cars and 
attacked Greek consulates

Emotions ran high in Greece on Thursday, Dec. 11, as the two police 
officers who were charged in the shooting death of 15-year-old Alexis 
Grigoropoulos were scheduled to be transferred to prison. Several 
hundred protestors camped out in front of the country’s biggest prison 
to await the officers' arrival.
At the Koyrdallos prison, protesters threw rocks and other missiles at 
police, according to a prison guard. Police fired tear gas at the 
protestors.
Grigoropoulos' death has sparked six days of rioting and protests across 
the country. The controversy heightened after initial reports indicated 
that Grigoropoulos was killed by a bullet ricochet, legal sources said.
No signs of truce

Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Most 
of the demonstrations have been tense, but peaceful
Earlier in the day, gangs of young people threw rocks and firebombs at 
Athens police stations while demonstrators clashed with police in front 
of the legislature building.

"We are fed up with scandals and corruption," demonstrator Efi Giannisi, 
a 38-year-old English teacher, told Reuters news agency.
Economic damage piling up
Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: 
Rioting and looting have caused millions in damages
The violence has taken its toll. The Athens Chamber of Commerce and 
Industry said 435 businesses had been hit, with 37 completely gutted. 
The damage in Athens alone was worth about 200 million euros ($259 
million), according to the Greek Commerce Confederation.
That left Greeks extremely frustrated, particularly with the inability 
of the government to contain the violence. George Papalexis, the owner 
of a gem store, said his business had sustained losses of 80,000 euros 
after rioters smashed through a reinforced window and made off with jewelry.
"Personally, I expect the government should resign," he told AFP news 
agency. "Very soon we'll see a change of government. It's a disgrace to 
see a city left to burn."
In a televised address, Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis pledged up to 
10,000 euros to stricken businesses, plus tax breaks and 
government-guaranteed loans to rebuild damaged property. Despite the 
turmoil, Karamanlis's office said he would attend a European Union 
summit in Brussels that starts Thursday.
With the current government holding only a razor-thin majority in 
parliament, the country could be heading for early elections. The 
opposition socialist party, which leads in the polls, has demanded just 
that.

"The most likely scenario now is that Karamanlis will call elections in 
two or three months' time," Georges Prevelakis, professor of geopolitics 
at Sorbonne University in Paris, told Reuters news agency.
Violence around Europe
Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Greek 
embassies around Europe have been targeted by protestors
But there were signs that Athens was calmer than on Wednesday, when many 
people took to the streets as part of a long-planned general strike by 
the country’s two largest unions. Still, there are concerns that the 
violence is not over. A fresh student demonstration was scheduled for 
Thursday evening, according to the interior ministry.
Outside Greece, small flare-ups were reported around Europe.
Arsonists torched two cars outside a Greek consulate in southwestern 
France before dawn Thursday, police said. Eight residents had to be 
evacuated from the building. Police found graffiti on a wall opposite 
the consulate reading "Support for the fires in Greece," "Insurrection 
Everywhere" and "The Coming Insurrection,” AFP reported.
In Istanbul, Turkish left-wing protestors threw paint over the front of 
the Greek consulate in Istanbul. In Moscow and Rome, there were reports 
that Greek embassies were targeted by firebombs.
In Spain, a dozen demonstrators were arrested and several police injured 
in clashes that took place in Madrid and Barcelona. Another 32 people 
were arrested in Copenhagen when a protest in support of Greek rioters 
turned violent, according to police.

DW staff (th)






http://www.thenational.ae/article/20081211/FOREIGN/504339928/1002/rss

Public mood shifting as riot enters day five
Michael Theodoulou, Foreign Correspondent
• Last Updated: December 11. 2008 8:30AM UAE / December 11. 2008 4:30AM GMT

Riot police face protesters during a demonstration in the northern Greek 
city of Thessaloniki. Dimitar Dillkoff / AFP
NICOSIA // Protesters clashed with police for a fifth straight day in 
Greece as the country was crippled by a 24-hour general strike yesterday 
that intensified pressure on the conservative government. But there were 
signs that the public mood is turning against the demonstrators and that 
the unrest could be ebbing.

Costas Karamanlis, the embattled prime minister who has rebuffed 
opposition calls to stand down and blamed the country’s worst unrest in 
more than three decades on “enemies of democracy”, pledged to restore 
order and announced measures to compensate business owners whose 
premises were torched or pillaged.

Mr Karamanlis’s ruling New Democracy Party has a mere one-seat majority 
in parliament and is behind in the opinion polls.

Union leaders had rejected his plaintive plea to cancel industrial 
action that was planned to protest against economic policies before 
nationwide violence erupted on Saturday after police fatally shot a 
15-year-old schoolboy, Alexandros Grigoropoulos.

His death dismayed Greeks across the political spectrum and unleashed a 
flood of pent-up public anger at political scandals, rising unemployment 
and poverty.

But leaked initial results from a post-mortem on Grigoropoulos yesterday 
indicated he was killed by a ricocheting bullet, as police had claimed, 
and not by a direct and deliberate shot as witnesses had alleged. The 
ballistics test, if verified, could help defuse the volatile situation.

Protesters lobbed two petrol bombs outside a court in Athens as the 
policeman who allegedly fired the fatal shot made his first appearance 
before an investigating magistrate. The 37-year-old officer has been 
charged with manslaughter and his patrol car partner as an accessory.

The general strike grounded internal and international flights, 
disrupted public transport, restricted hospital services and left 
schools closed. Many shops in Athens stayed shut in case of further 
rioting and vandalism while some proprietors slept in their premises to 
protect their livelihoods against looters. But most private sector 
employees found the means to reach their places of work.

Thousands of protesters, who joined a rally organised by Greece’s two 
biggest trade unions, marched past burnt-out cars and looted shops to 
gather outside the parliament building in the centre of Athens, chanting 
“Government murderers!” and “Sack Karamanlis”.

Leaders of public and private unions had called for a peaceful rally to 
protest against the government’s economic policies, but the event was 
soon hijacked by anarchist youths as Mr Karamanlis had warned it would 
be. Protesters lobbed fire bombs, pavement slabs and bottles at police 
outside the parliament building, the cradle of Greece’s proud and 
ancient democracy, while police responded with volleys of choking tear gas.

But the numbers protesting outside parliament were far smaller than 
union leaders had predicted. This is likely to raise the fragile 
government’s hopes that general dismay at the scale of wanton 
destruction in recent days could be dampening the widespread anger.

A commentary in the conservative daily Kathimerini newspaper reflected a 
mood of national despair and soul-searching rather than one of mounting 
outrage.

“It is difficult to discern any logic in such a situation,” the 
commentary said. “This is a country with a state that is in shambles, a 
police force in disarray, mediocre universities that serve as hotbeds 
for rage instead of knowledge and a shattered health care system. It is 
also on the brink of financial ruin.”

The Athens Trading Association estimated that four days of rampaging, 
arson and pillaging has caused US$1.3 billion (Dh6.2bn) worth of damage. 
More than 500 shops in the historic capital were said to have suffered 
serious damage or were completely destroyed.

Elected in 2004 on the promise of combating corruption, Mr Karamanlis’s 
centre-right government has been hit by a spate of bribery and fraud 
allegations.

Unions, meanwhile, say that privatisations, tax rises and pension 
reforms have worsened conditions, especially for the one-fifth of Greeks 
who live below the poverty line, precisely at a time when the global 
financial downturn is hitting the country hard. Unemployment is high, 
particularly among young graduates.

Greece’s two main unions are demanding pay rises, additional support for 
low-income families and increases for pensions and unemployment benefit. 
Petros Rembolis, a researcher for one of the unions, estimates that the 
country’s job market can only absorb half of the 80,000 graduates who 
leave university each year. Those who do find jobs often earn between 
$500 and $600 a month while prices are as high as those in Germany or 
France, he said.

“European prices, African wages,” is a common slogan used by disaffected 
Greek youth.

Anastassia Kotzamani, a sociology graduate, said her only option was to 
move abroad for work. “We won’t put up with this government any more. We 
are 25 years old, we’ve finished our studies but there are no jobs.”

While outrage over Grigoropoulos’s death was common in Greece and 
dissatisfaction with the government is high, many are also appalled by 
the wanton acts of destructive violence and arson by hooded rioters. 
Equally, the government has come under fire for not curbing the mayhem: 
officials fear that heavy-handed police action could further inflame the 
situation. Kathimerini reported that some government ministers are also 
unhappy with the decision to encourage the police to adopt a “defensive” 
stance which has been exploited by anarchists and radical leftists.

A student uprising in 1974 succeeded in ending seven years of detested 
military rule, but it also left a legacy of activism and simmering 
tensions between the security establishment and an assortment of deeply 
entrenched leftist groups that often protest against globalisation and 
US foreign policy.

But their impact has usually been limited to graffiti and late-night 
firebomb attacks on targets such as high-end shops and banks.

Whatever the government’s shortcomings, complacency will no longer be 
among them.






http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/1211/p04s01-woeu.html

Will strike and riots bring Greek government down?
Five days of protests, and a nationwide strike Wednesday, have shaken 
the conservative ruling party.
By Nicole Itano | Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor
from the December 11, 2008 edition
Athens - On an Athens street lined with luxury stores, a small pile of 
flowers has been laid outside a store owned by the mother of the 
15-year-old boy killed by a policeman's bullet Dec. 6. Elsewhere on the 
street, shops are shut and boarded, victims of five days of rioting.
The violent unrest in Greece – the worst since World War II – may have 
begun with Alexandros Grigoropoulos' death, but it has now widened into 
tide of anger over government corruption and perceived economic failure. 
Greece's ruling center-right New Democracy Party is now fighting to 
bring order to the streets – and for its own political survival. Calls 
for the government to step down are mounting.
"The ruling party is numb. It was caught by surprise and in no way 
responded as it ought to," says Thanos Veremis, a professor at the 
University of Athens. "And the opposition ... politicians are fueling 
the anger" for their own gain.
On Wednesday, a nationwide strike led by unions brought the country to a 
standstill and led to further clashes outside Greece's Parliament. The 
strike was called long before the events of Dec. 6 to protest the 
government's economic policies and demand better pensions and higher 
pay. But the unions are benefitting from anger over the boy's death.
"The Greek people are very furious about the things that have happened," 
says Maria Yaniris, an opera singer who joined the protesters on 
Wednesday. "Everything started with the death of the 15-year-old boy ... 
but personally I don't think this was the basic reason."
"As a country, we have big problems," she says. "Young people have to 
face a life that is full of uncertainties."
The bulk of the violence is being caused by a comparatively small number 
of people, mainly anarchists and other radical anti-establishment 
parties who have now been joined by university students. These loosely 
organized groups have clashed with police for decades, since the days 
when Greece was ruled by a military junta between 1967 and 1974.
But the killing of Alexandros escalated that simmering conflict to a new 
level and angered many youths, who are pessimistic about their future. 
"The youth are in a bad and worsening situation," says Peter Linardos, 
an economist for Greece's trade unions. "I've been saying for years that 
... we were going to have an explosion."
In the initial days of the conflict, the police took a restrained 
stance, generally refusing to engage with protesters. But on Tuesday, 
police frustration began to show. In one incident, police fired warning 
shots into the air.
Many Greeks are dismayed by the scale of the violence. But there is 
nevertheless widespread outrage at the police, who are seen as guilty of 
a pattern of abuse. Skepticism dates to the junta, when police were 
responsible for torturing people with left-leaning political views.
But the circumstances of boy's death have fed that mistrust. Police say 
he was killed accidentally by a warning shot that ricocheted, and a 
lawyer for the policemen involved now says a government autopsy confirms 
that story. But claims that he was shot in cold blood after an argument 
have become the dominant political narrative here.
Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis met with leaders of rival parties 
Tuesday, calling on them to support his effort to bring order back to 
the country's streets.
George Papandreou, leader of Greece's Socialist party, emerged from the 
meeting with calls for early elections.
Desperate to show that it can restore order, Greece's government is 
sounding a harder note. But the arsenal available to authorities is 
limited. Greek police have tear gas and shields, for example, but no 
rubber bullets. And so far, the public is still wary of giving police a 
freer hand.






http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2008/12/11/2003430817

Protesters throw fire bombs on day four of Greek riots

AGENCIES, ATHENS
Thursday, Dec 11, 2008, Page 1
Protesters threw fire bombs at police outside parliament yesterday 
during a general strike that paralyzed Greece and piled pressure on a 
conservative government reeling from the worst riots in decades.
“Government murderers!” demonstrators shouted, furious at the shooting 
of a teenager by police on Saturday that has sparked four days of 
violence fueled by simmering public anger at political scandals, rising 
unemployment and poverty.

Witnesses said the officer who fired the shot took deliberate aim, but 
his lawyer said yesterday that a ballistics report showed the boy was 
killed by an accidental ricochet.

“The investigation shows it was a ricochet ... In the end, this was an 
accident,” lawyer Alexis Kougias said. The ballistics report has yet to 
be officially published.

Thousands marched on parliament in a union rally against economic and 
social policy, which quickly turned violent. Police fired teargas and 
protesters responded with stones, bottles and sticks, a witness said.

The opposition socialist party has said the government, which has a 
one-seat majority and trails in opinion polls, has lost the trust of the 
people and has called for elections.

“Participation in the strike is total, the country has come to a 
standstill,” said Stathis Anestis, spokesman for the GSEE union 
federation which called the 24-hour stoppage.

Foreign and domestic flights were grounded, banks and schools were shut, 
and hospitals ran on emergency services as hundreds of thousands of 
Greeks walked off the job.

Unions say privatizations, tax rises and pension reform have worsened 
conditions, especially for the one-fifth of Greeks who live below the 
poverty line, precisely at a time when the global downturn is hurting 
the country.

Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis, who swept to power amid the 
euphoria of the 2004 Athens Olympics, appealed to political leaders for 
unity and urged unions to cancel yesterday’s rally. But his requests 
were flatly rejected by the opposition.

“He and his government are responsible for the widespread crisis that 
the country, that Greek society is experiencing,” socialist party 
spokesman George Papakonstantinou said.

One policeman has been charged with murder over the shooting of 
Alexandros Grigoropoulos, but has said he only fired in warning. The 
officer was due to appear before investigators with his colleague, who 
has been charged as an accomplice.

Rioting at the teenager’s death began in Athens on Saturday and quickly 
spread to at least 10 cities across the country. Greeks also protested 
in Paris, Berlin, London, The Hague and Cyprus.

The riots, Greece’s worst unrest since the aftermath of military rule in 
1974, have caused more than 20 million euros (US$25.9 million) in damage 
in wrecked cars, torched shops and banks, insurers say.

At the last count across Greece, 108 people had been arrested — with one 
of the most graphic attacks by looting rioters involving swords and 
slingshots stolen from a weapons shop, police said.





http://www.channel4.com/news/articles/politics/international_politics/protests+and+strike+grips+greece/2879657

Protests and strike grips Greece
Watch the report
Print this page
Last Modified: 10 Dec 2008
By: Channel 4 News
The worst riots in decades, as protesters threw fire bombs at police 
outside parliament, during a general strike which paralysed Greece and 
piled pressure on a conservative government.
Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis announced financial support for 
businesses damaged in five days of rioting. He also pledged to safeguard 
people from violence, but did not say how.

"Government murderers!" demonstrators shouted, furious at the shooting 
of a teenager by police on Saturday which sparked riots fuelled by 
simmering public anger at political scandals, rising unemployment and 
poverty.

Witnesses said the officer who fired the shot took deliberate aim, but 
his lawyer said on Wednesday a ballistics report showed the boy was 
killed by an accidental ricochet.






http://www.voanews.com/english/archive/2008-12/2008-12-10-voa24.cfm?CFID=159174916&CFTOKEN=32758216&jsessionid=8830676cc80dc759b5291a5649357f401e13

General Strike Pressures Greek Government
By Nathan Morley
Nicosia, Cyprus
10 December 2008
Violence and turmoil continue in Greece where unions staged a general 
strike Wednesday in protest against the government's economic policies. 
The strike had been scheduled before the riots that erupted late last 
week after the death of a 15-year-old who was hit by a police bullet.

Demonstrators attend a union rally at Syntagma Square in central Athens, 
Greece, 10 Dec 2008
Thousands of marchers turned out in central Athens to protest the 
government's economic policies, unemployment and general discontent with 
the current administration.

Some demonstrators threw home-made fire bombs and rocks at the police 
lines, while others chanted slogans such as "Down with the government."

This strike shut Greece down - nearly everything was closed, from banks 
and shops to airports and schools. The powerful Greek workers unions 
that called this action are demanding more social spending and an 
increase in wages and pensions.

Many people in Greece have complained that since the country adopted the 
Euro currency, living standards have dropped and prices increased.

There is also widespread discontent about high levels of immigration 
from bordering countries and spiraling crime.

This national strike follows four days of violence sparked by the 
killing of a teenager by police on Saturday - that incident has caused 
unprecedented waves of violence and rioting to erupt across the southern 
European country.

Despite coming under fire from all sides, Greece's embattled prime 
minister has vowed to restore order in the country. He has also pledged 
state help for the thousands of businesses that were destroyed during 
the riots - some shops and offices were completely gutted by fire.

But such assurances and promises are too little, too late says 
opposition spokesman George Papacostandiniou of the PASOK party, he 
thinks the government has little chance of surviving the current crisis.

"I think the government is in a difficult position; it has been for some 
time now," he said. "The fact that Greeks for the last few years have 
been seeing public investments slashed, expenditure on health and 
education cut back. It is in trouble because inequalities are growing 
and it is in trouble because a string of corruption scandals at the 
highest levels of government that has completely eroded confidence."

In a separate development, a lawyer representing the police officer who 
fired the shot that killed the teenager on Saturday said ballistics 
tests on the fatal bullet showed the death was probably an accident and 
caused by the bullet ricocheting from a wall. But this new information 
seems to have done little to calm the violence, which is now in its 
fifth day.






http://www.news24.com/News24/World/News/0,,2-10-1462_2440271,00.html

Protesters throw fire bombs
10/12/2008 15:24 - (SA)

Athens - Protesters threw fire bombs at police outside parliament on 
Wednesday during a general strike which paralysed Greece and piled 
pressure on a conservative government reeling from the worst riots in 
decades.
"Government murderers!" demonstrators shouted, furious at the shooting 
of a teenager by police on Saturday which has sparked four days of 
violence fuelled by simmering public anger at political scandals, rising 
unemployment and poverty.
Witnesses said the officer who fired the shot took deliberate aim, but 
his lawyer said on Wednesday that a ballistics report showed the boy was 
killed by an accidental ricochet.
"The investigation shows it was a ricochet ... In the end, this was an 
accident," lawyer Alexis Kougias told Reuters. The ballistics report has 
not yet been officially published.
Riots have raged in at least 10 cities and the cost of damage to shops 
and businesses in Athens alone is estimated at about €200m, the Greek 
Commerce Confederation said.
"In Athens, we had 565 shops suffering serious damage or being 
completely destroyed", said Vassilis Krokidis, vice president of the 
federation.
Thousands marched on parliament on Wednesday in a union rally at 
economic and social policy, which quickly turned violent. Police fired 
teargas and protesters responded with stones, bottles and sticks, a 
Reuters witness said.
'A demand for change'
The opposition socialist party has said the government, which has a 
one-seat majority and trails in opinion polls, has lost the trust of the 
people and has called for elections.
"Participation in the strike is total, the country has come to a 
standstill," said Stathis Anestis, spokesperson for the GSEE union 
federation which called the 24-hour stoppage.
Foreign and domestic flights were grounded, banks and schools were shut, 
and hospitals ran on emergency services as hundreds of thousands of 
Greeks walked off the job.
Unions say privatisations, tax rises and pension reform have worsened 
conditions, especially for the one-fifth of Greeks who live below the 
poverty line, precisely at a time when the global downturn is hurting 
the €240bn economy.
"There is demand for change: social, economic and political change," 
said Odysseas Korakidis, 25, who works two jobs. "It's not unusual here 
to hold down two jobs to get just €800 or €1 000 a month. In other 
countries, that's inconceivable!"
Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis, who swept to power amid the euphoria 
of the 2004 Athens Olympics, appealed to political leaders for unity and 
urged unions to cancel Wednesday's rally. But his requests were flatly 
rejected by the opposition.
'More afraid than ever'
"He and his government are responsible for the widespread crisis that 
the country, that Greek society is experiencing," said socialist party 
spokesman George Papakonstantinou.
One policeman has been charged with murder over the shooting of teenager 
Alexandros Grigoropoulos, but has said he only fired in warning. The 
officer was due to appear before investigators with his colleague, who 
has been charged as an accomplice.
Rioting at the boy's death began in Athens on Saturday and quickly 
spread across the European Union nation of 11 million people. Greeks 
also protested in Paris, Berlin, London, The Hague and in Cyprus.
The unrest is the worst in Greece since the aftermath of military rule 
in 1974.
"The death of the kid was an excuse that lit the match," said grocery 
store owner Yannis Thomas, 60. "Today we are more afraid than ever 
because of the strike."
Wednesday's strike by GSEE and its public sector counterpart ADEDY, 
which group half of Greece's five-million-strong work force, was the 
latest in a series of labour protests by unions.
Tradition of violence
Many shops in central Athens stayed shut, boarding up their windows to 
prevent further damage. Bus stops and litter bins were blackened by 
fire, public telephone booths smashed and some buildings gutted by blazes.
Greece has a tradition of violence at student rallies and fire bomb 
attacks by anarchist groups, which have heightened tensions with police. 
Amnesty International, in a report on Tuesday, accused police of 
brutality in handling the riots.
Karamanlis has promised to compensate shopkeepers but his government 
already faces a big deficit.
In four years of conservative rule, a series of scandals, devastating 
forest fires last summer, and misfired economic measures have erased the 
optimistic mood of the 2004 Olympics.
- Reuters






http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/dec/10/greece-riots-protests

Greece shut down by strike amid renewed clashes
• Pitched battles outside parliament
• Boy died from ricochet, says lawyer
• Country 'at a standstill' as strike deepens

• Helena Smith in Athens
• guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 10 December 2008 17.45 GMT

A general strike shut down schools, hospitals, flight and public 
services across Greece today, touching off further riots that left 
dozens injured and piling the pressure on a government severely shaken 
by five days of unprecedented civil unrest.
Stone-throwing youths fought pitched battles with riot police outside 
Athens' parliament as thousands of striking workers joined a separate 
demonstration, chanting their way through the capital.
Amid screams of "let parliament burn," protesters hurled petrol bombs, 
marble slabs and pieces of cement at police who responded by firing 
rounds of acrid tear gas into the air.
The clashes, triggered by the police shooting of 15-year-old Alexandros 
Grigoropoulos, are the worst disturbances to hit Greece since the end of 
military rule in 1974.
Angry mobs have relentlessly laid siege to cities nationwide, plundering 
public buildings, stores and cars before sending them up in flames in an 
orgy of destruction.
With the country shut down and Greece's links to the world cut as a 
result of the strike, the conservative administration – already clinging 
onto power by a single seat in Athens' 300 member House – found itself 
facing a full-scale political crisis.
Addressing the nation in a bid to contain the spiralling tensions, the 
prime minister, Costas Karamanlis, today pledged financial support for 
those who had suffered damage and promised to protect individuals from 
further violence.
But opposition to the free-market conservatives' fiscal policies and 
plans to privatise hospitals and schools, is unlikely to fade soon. 
Support for the government, even from the most die-hard conservatives, 
has dropped dramatically with nearly 70% telling pollsters they have 
mishandled the crisis.
"The only way out of this impasse is for the government to resign and 
call early elections," said Spyros Polyzos, a 60-year-old accountant 
participating in the demonstration.
"Young people are right to take to the streets. They have absolutely no 
future. It's not just the global economic crisis. Even if they speak 
three foreign languages and get the best degrees they can't find work, 
and if they do it pays badly. The only thing that saves them is the 
strong family ties here."
"These protests are our answer to a government that always closes the 
doors in our face," said Yiannis Yiapitsakis, a student at Athens' 
fabled Polytechnic.
"If the root causes of our problems are not solved there will be more 
explosions. It's a smouldering fire, all it needs is another match."
Symbolic of the fear and loathing gripping Greece is the makeshift 
shrine erected on the spot in Athens where Grigoropoulos was shot dead.
In handwritten notes, cards, paintings and poems, Greeks of all ages not 
only honoured the young "martyr" but gave vivid testimony to a country 
that increasingly appears to be on the verge of a nervous breakdown.
"You have paid for what people like me who belong to the generation of 
50-year-olds, know to be true," wrote one father in a note placed on top 
of a pile of roses, candles, plants and paper icons.
"That we are shaking with worry over the future of our children. 
Something has to happen now."
Today, according to a lawyer for the two police officers accused in the 
fatal shooting, a ballistic examination revealed that the schoolboy had 
died as an accident after the bullet ricocheted.
"Whether it was an accident or not that policemen should never have 
pulled a gun on a child," said 20-year-old Menelaos Katrakis paying 
homage at the scene. "The killing somehow sums up everything that is 
wrong with Greece today: repression, police brutality and fear."







http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/World-News/Greece-Stops-For-General-Strike-Violence-Continues-Following-Teens-Police-Shooting-Death/Article/200812215176072?f=rss

More Violence As Greece Strikes
3:00pm UK, Wednesday December 10, 2008
Protesters and police clashed outside parliament during a general strike 
which brought Greece to a standstill.

Protesters clash with riot police
More than 10,000 people gathered in the Greek capital to protest against 
the government's economic policies.
But the demonstration quickly turned violent, marking the fifth day of 
clashes since the shooting of a teenage boy by police on Saturday.
Riot police fired tear gas and protesters responded with fire bombs, 
stones, bottles and sticks.
In an effort to restore order, Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis 
announced financial support for businesses damaged during the rioting.
"The government is determined not only to make citizens feel safe but to 
support businesses which suffered damage," he said in a televised address.
At least 435 business have been affected so far, including 37 that were 
completely gutted, the Athens Chamber of Commerce and Industry said, 
putting the cost of the damage at 50 million euros.
The union federation which organised the strike said participation had 
been "total" and that Greece had "come to a standstill".
Foreign and domestic flights were grounded, banks and schools were shut, 
and hospitals ran on emergency services as hundreds of thousands walked 
off the job.

Alexandros' funeral in Athens
Rioting began in Athens on Saturday after the shooting of Alexandros 
Grigoropoulos and quickly spread across the nation.
The lawyer acting for the officer who fired the shot said an initial 
report showed the 15-year-old was killed by an accidental ricochet.
One policeman has been charged with murder, but claims he only fired in 
warning. A colleague has been charged as an accomplice.
Protesters threw two petrol bombs outside a court as the two officers 
arrived for questioning before a magistrate.
Mr Karamanlis' government holds a single-seat majority in the 300-member 
Greek parliament.
It has faced growing opposition over changes to the country's pension 
system, privatisation and the loosening of state control of higher 
education, which many students oppose because they feel it will 
undermine their degrees.






http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/12/10/greece.riots/index.html?eref=ib_topstories

December 11, 2008 -- Updated 0656 GMT (1456 HKT)

Clashes, strike shut down Athens
• Story Highlights
• Greek protesters clash with riot police at demonstrations in Athens
• Nationwide strike taking place amid unrest over police shooting of 
teenager
• Banks, schools, and hospitals closed; public transport in Athens halted
• Lawyer for officers accused over shooting says boy, 15, was killed by 
ricochet

ATHENS, Greece (CNN) -- The Greek government was struggling to bring 
violent protests under control Wednesday, five days after they were 
sparked by the police killing of a teenager.

Riot police face protesters in Athens Wednesday as debris burns in the 
streets.

Athens announced aid for small businesses but demonstrators continued to 
stage standoffs and riots in the Greek capital, while workers held a 
long-planned strike in one of the city's main squares.
Greek police confronted protesters outside the parliament building after 
days of rioting that have brought the city to a standstill and 
threatened the government's hold on power.
A lawyer for the officers accused of killing the teenager said Wednesday 
that a ballistics test showed the policeman had not fired directly at 
the 15-year-old.
The bullet ricocheted off another object before hitting Alexandros 
Grigoropoulos in the chest, attorney Alex Kougias said.
The family of the boy, who was buried Tuesday, has called in its own 
investigators to verify state findings, the Athens coroner told CNN. 
Watch crowds gather for the funeral »
The shooting happened in a restive Athens neighborhood after six young 
protesters pelted a police patrol car with stones. Grigoropoulos was 
shot as he tried to throw a fuel-filled bomb at the officers, police said.
Striking union members condemned what they called "the cold-blooded 
murder of the young Alexander," as they demanded higher wages, a ban on 
mass layoffs by companies receiving government assistance, and the 
doubling of government funding for education, health and welfare programs.
Meanwhile, the mayor of Athens appealed for calm along with help in 
returning the city to normal, while the government released a statement 
saying everyone bears responsibility for restoring order.
So far, however, the Greek leadership has appeared unable to quell the 
violence and there is growing pressure on the government to resign. 
Watch how the unrest could cause a crisis »
Saturday's shooting, which sparked the riots, was only one reason for 
the days of unrest. Many Greeks were already angry over how the 
government was run, allegations of corruption, the state of the economy 
and a lack of jobs.
Protesters outside parliament hurled stones and projectiles, some of 
them on fire, at a line of police dressed in green uniforms, white 
helmets, and armed with shields. The police occasionally advanced but 
did not respond.
But the violence then spread to other areas, with students responsible 
for much of the disorder, according to Achilles Popas, a reporter for 
Greek station Skai TV. The students hurled petrol bombs and caused a lot 
of damage in the city center, where shattered glass covered the ground, 
Popas told CNN.
Police responded by using tear gas, Popas said. They appeared to be 
trying to keep their distance from the protesters but the clashes 
continued, he added.
Wednesday's strike went ahead despite a plea from Prime Minister Kostas 
Karamanlis to hold off amid the violence.
Banks, schools, and hospitals were closed and transportation was at a 
halt with urban buses and the Athens subway shut. Many local and 
international flights were canceled.
Karamanlis condemned the "destructive fury and brutal violence" of the 
protesters.
"The rioters, with their acts, once again, demonstrated that the only 
thing that inspires them is the destruction," the prime minister said in 
a statement. "They have targeted social peace, the rule of law, and 
democracy itself. That is why they are isolated."
Karamanlis said the violence has affected businesses, especially small 
ones already suffering from the economic downturn. He announced a series 
of measures to help merchants recover, including reimbursement for 
losses, direct financial assistance, 15-year loans, and suspended debts.
Athens Mayor Nikita Kaklamani asked all Athens residents to buy 
something from the shops as a symbolic show of support.
"The city wants a smile, it wants hope. We will provide it, because this 
must be Athens' fate," the mayor said in a statement. "We will defend 
its history, its cultural heritage, the fortunes of our fellow citizens 
and, above all, human lives."
In his statement, Karamanlis said the government was acting responsibly 
and he called on all political parties to work together.
Greek Foreign Minister Dora Bakogiannis tried to spread the blame for 
the broad dissatisfaction.

"The central responsibility of managing a difficult crisis undoubtedly 
remains with the elected government of a land," Bakogiannis said in a 
statement issued Wednesday. "However, I would like to stress no one is 
without responsibility, (including) political parties and institutions. 
A share of the responsibility for order, the city's economic life, 
remains with us all."
Opposition leaders have blasted the government amid the unrest. The 
leader of the left-wing opposition party SYRIZA has called for 
protesters to topple the government, but Karamanlis ruled out early 
elections.






http://www.ana-mpa.gr/anaweb/user/showplain?maindoc=7108885&service=142

Demonstrations over teen killing trigger new round of violence
Demonstrations held to protest against the shooting of a 15-year-old 
youth by police triggered another round of violence in Greek cities on 
Sunday afternoon, with clashes between police and rioters in major Greek 
cities.
The march in Athens was once again marked by mayhem that carried on 
until late into the evening, as youths belonging to far-left groups came 
to blows with MAT riot police on Alexandras Avenue and later around the 
area of the Athens Polytechnic.
The streets of the city were rank with the smell of tear gas throughout 
most of the day as Alexandras Avenue was turned into a battle field, 
with pockets of violence between rioters and police along the length of 
Patission and Stournari Streets.
Taking part in the march along Alexandras Avenue were protestors 
belonging to the Coalition of Left, Movements and Ecology (SYN) party, 
the Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA) and their respective youth 
movements, as well as several other leftist organisations.
Though starting off peacefully, the march quickly descended into 
violence once it turned into Alexandras Avenue and self-proclaimed 
anarchists began attacking shops on both sides of the road, prompting 
police to use tear gas that forced the peaceful elements of the march 
into flight.
At around 15:00, the rioters succeeded in torching the environment 
ministry building on the corner of Alexandras Avenue and Harilaou 
Trikoupi streets, while MAT riot police looked on. The fire threatened 
to spread to an apartment building next door but was put out by the fire 
brigade.
As a result of the fire, the demonstrators in the march started to pull 
back because they were unable to continue. The march was eventually 
stopped near the Supreme Court building and spread to the side streets 
around Alexandras, where demonstrators were playing a cat-and-mouse game 
with police, setting fire to overturned dumpsters as they passed.
By Sunday evening, Alexandras Avenue was a shambles, with broken shop 
fronts, rocks strewn all over the road, vandalised bus stops and torched 
dumpsters all around. A Veropoulos supermarket at Panagiotara was nearly 
burnt to the ground, as was a Ford car dealership on the corner of 
Patriarchou Ioakeim street.
All along the length of the road, strong fire-fighting forces were 
attempting to put out fires that had been lit by rioters, who had by 
then dispersed into sidestreets heading for Exarhia.
Scenes of violence were also reported at demonstrations taking place in 
other Greek cities at around the same time, with demonstrators attacking 
a police station at Ano Poli in Thessaloniki after they were stopped 
from attacking a police station at the city's White Tower by riot police 
using tear gas.
Apart from the usual forms of havoc and damage during demonstrations, 
rioters also set fire to a container at a metro worksite outside the 
Thessaloniki University central library, while the city also had to 
contend with violence between rival football supporters after a game 
between PASOK and Iraklis.
Members of far-left student organisations have now indefintely taken 
over the Thessaloniki Bar Association premises, saying that they intend 
to use this as a press office to issue announcements and information 
prompted by the killing of the 15-year-old in Athens.
Minor incidents continued to be reported throughout Thessaloniki until 
late in the evening, with more damage to shop fronts, banks and parked 
cars in the city.
Tension, violence and use of tear gas also marked marches and 
demonstrations held in the city of Patras, where police arrested five 
people, and on the island of Crete during demonstrations in Hania and in 
Rethymno.






http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?from=rss_World&set_id=1&click_id=3&art_id=nw20081210140257424C954427

Protests cripple Greece

December 10 2008 at 02:34PM


Athens - Riot police clashed with demonstrators outside Parliament on 
Wednesday as a general strike paralysed Greece, shutting down schools, 
hospitals and international flights and raising pressure on a fragile 
government reeling from four days of riots.

The lawyer for the two officers accused in the fatal shooting of a 
teenager that set off the unrest said ballistics show 15-year-old 
Alexandros Griogropoulos was killed by a ricochet and not a direct shot. 
Lawyer Alexis Cougias said the report corroborated the officers' account 
that they fired warning shots and did not shoot directly at the boy.

One officer has been charged with murder and the other as an accomplice. 
They were to appear in court later in the day. Authorities have not made 
the ballistics report public.
The rioting and demonstrations were set off by anger at the shooting but 
fed by months of widespread discontent with the conservative government 
of Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis, whose party holds a majority of a 
single seat in the 300-member parliament.

More than 10 000 people marched through the centre of the city to 
protest the conservative government's economic policies. Riot police 
began firing tear gas when a small group of youths threw Molotov 
cocktails and rocks at them near Parliament in the center of the Greek 
capital.

Flights to and from Athens International Airport were canceled, and 
public hospitals across Greece were operating with a skeleton staff. 
Schools and universities were closed.

Karamanlis has faced growing opposition over changes to the country's 
pension system, privatisation and the loosening of state control of 
higher education, which many students oppose because they feel it will 
undermine their degrees.

The government's support has dropped lower as gangs of youths maraud 
through cities across the country, torching businesses, looting shops 
and setting up burning barricades across streets.

Storeowners accuse riot police of leaving their businesses unprotected 
as rioters smashed and burned their way through popular shopping 
districts. Although police have fired volley after volley of tear gas 
when attacked by rock- and Molotov cocktail-throwing protesters, they 
held back when youths turned against buildings and cars.

Local media reported early on Wednesday that groups of civilians had 
begun taking matters into their own hands, confronting looters in the 
western city of Patras and the central city of Larissa.

Opposition Socialist leader George Papandreou claimed the conservatives 
are incapable of defending the public from rioters.

But Karamanlis has so far ignored mounting calls for him to resign and 
call early elections.

An opinion poll for the conservative daily Kathimerini published on 
Wednesday found 68 percent of Greece believe the government mishandled 
the crisis - including nearly half of respondents who voted for 
Karamanlis' conservative party in general elections last year. Only 18 
percent approved.

The Public Issues survey was based on a sample of 478 people questioned 
on Monday and Tuesday and had a 4,5 percent margin of error.

"The government wanted us to postpone this protest, but they are the 
ones who have to do something to stop this violence and to improve the 
quality of our lives," said one demonstrator, drama student Kalypso 
Synenoglou.

Greece has a long legacy of activism; it was a student uprising that 
eventually brought down a seven-year military junta in 1974. Tensions 
persist between the security establishment and a phalanx of deeply 
entrenched leftist groups that often protest globalisation and US 
foreign policy in the Middle East and elsewhere.

The groups have now evolved into various mainly youth factions that 
claim to fight trends ranging from globalisation to police surveillance 
cameras. Their impact is usually limited to graffiti and late-night 
firebomb attacks on targets such as stores and cash machines.

Amnesty International accused Greek police of heavy-handed tactics 
against protesters, saying police "engaged in punitive violence against 
peaceful demonstrators" instead of focusing on rioters.

Authorities are investigating reports officers used their pistols to 
fire warning shots in the air during Tuesday's riots. - Sapa-AP







http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/breaking-news/world/europe/greek-violence-eases-after-four-days-of-rioting-14100873.html?r=RSS

Greek violence eases after four days of rioting
Wednesday, 10 December 2008

Street violence has eased in Greece overnight following four days of 
rioting triggered by the police shooting of a 15-year-old boy.
Hundreds of students, anarchists and looters attacked police and shops 
during an explosion of rage that erupted after the shooting in the 
Exarchia area of Athens over the weekend.
A police officer has been charged with murder in connection with the 
incident.
The nightly scenes of burning street barricades, overturned cars and 
looted shops have increased pressure on the unpopular conservative 
government, with Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis facing mounting calls 
to resign.






http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/greece/3700248/Greece-comes-to-a-standstill-as-riots-continue.html

Greece comes to a standstill as riots continue
Greece came to a standstill today as a nationwide strike piled pressure 
on the government as it struggled to deal with the worst rioting in decades.

By Nick Squires In Athens
Published: 10:17AM GMT 10 Dec 2008
Banks, schools and public transport were shut and hundreds of flights in 
and out of the country were cancelled as air traffic controllers also 
went on strike.
Stathis Anestis, spokesman for a federation of private sector unions, 
said: "Participation in the strike is total, the country has come to a 
standstill."
The opposition Socialist party repeated calls for the centre-right 
government of Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis to resign and call early 
elections.
"He and his government are responsible for the widespread crisis that 
the country, that Greek society is experiencing," said Socialist party 
spokesman George Papakonstantinou.
Newspapers added to the pressure on Mr Karamanlis's beleaguered 
administration, with the headline in the popular daily Ta Nea warning: 
"Government and police on the brink of collapse".
The paralysis came as police clashed with demonstrators in Athens, 
Thessaloniki, Ioaninna and on the Aegean island of Rhodes for the fourth 
night in a row. At least seven officers were injured.
In the capital, students hurled petrol bombs and riot police responded 
with tear gas a few blocks from where 15-year-old schoolboy Alexis 
Grigoropoulos was shot dead by a police officer on Saturday night, 
plunging Greece into its worst civil unrest for decades.
"The winds of destruction are blowing through our city," said Athens 
Mayor Nikitas Kaklamanis.
A ballistics report on Saturday's shooting reportedly concluded that the 
bullet that killed the schoolboy had ricocheted off something before 
hitting and fatally wounding him.
Alexis Kougias, the lawyer acting for the policeman who fired the gun, 
said: "The investigation shows it was a ricochet ... In the end, this 
was an accident."
The ballistics report is yet to be published officially.
The policeman was due to appear before investigators with his partner, 
who has been charged as an accomplice.
The teenager's death was the catalyst for an outpouring of anger among 
ordinary Greeks over government corruption scandals, high unemployment, 
low wages, pension reform and the effects of the global financial crisis.
Authorities fear that today's rally, organised by Greece's two main 
union federations, could spark further violence and police are again on 
high alert.
The riots, the worst since a student uprising toppled Greece's military 
dictatorship in 1974, have caused tens of millions of pounds' damage in 
wrecked cars, looted shops and torched banks.
Mr Karamanlis, 52, swept to power amid euphoria before the 2004 Athens 
Olympics but his government's reputation has since been tarnished by a 
series of ministerial scandals, the handling of devastating forest fires 
last summer, and economic measures which have brought pain to many Greeks.
In a televised address, Mr Karamanlis blamed the four days of violence 
on the "enemies of democracy." He warned that "the struggles of workers 
and the unjust death of a youth cannot be confused with acts of vandalism."






http://www.euronews.net/2008/12/10/mass-arrests-after-4-nights-of-rioting-in-greece/

Mass arrests after 4 nights of rioting in Greece
10/12/08 07:38 CET
Amid the whiff of teargas, flares from Molotov cocktails and the rattle 
of rocks hurled at police, Greece is witnessing the worst rioting it has 
seen in a quarter of a century. Much of downtown Athens has been shut 
down for days with damage to banks, hotels and cars already running into 
millions of euros
In a change of tactic, the police response to rioters has generally been 
more robust and a number of arrests have been made. A plaza in front of 
the Greek parliament was a particular target for demonstrators to show 
their anger but police seemed determined not to allow it to become a 
battleground.
The police however had to move in carefully to make their arrests. After 
all, it was the shooting dead of a 15-year-old youth which sparked the 
riots in the first place. Since the protests began, demonstrators have 
not been voicing particular policy goals, but they are united the 
Caramanlis government must quit.
Meanwhile, in the same area outside parliament, a separate group of 
demonstrators held what they had planned as a peaceful protest.They 
claimed they were the alternative to all the violent protests of the 
last few days. The only guns they wielded were symbolic paper ones 
printed on posters.






http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_politics_0_10/12/2008_102909

Attempt at consensus fails as rioting continues
PM’s talks with opposition leaders yields no common ground

JOHN KOLESIDIS/REUTERS LEFTERIS PITARAKIS/REUTERS

OLEG POPOV/REUTERS
The funeral of Alexis Grigoropoulos took place in the southern Athens 
suburb of Palaio Faliron yesterday (left). According to some estimates, 
more than 5,000 people attended the service. Top left: A protester tries 
to escape from riot police in front of Parliament, which was the scene 
of more clashes yesterday. Top right: An Athenian surveys the damage 
done to stores and businesses in the city center after three nights of 
rioting.
Rioting continued in Athens and numerous other Greek cities for a third 
full day yesterday as the prime minister’s attempts to achieve some 
political consensus on dealing with the turmoil failed to find any 
significant support from opposition parties.
Rioters again clashed with police in central Athens after a night of 
widespread havoc and looting that resulted in the damage done to shops 
and businesses in the capital being estimated at 1 billion euros.
There was also violence in at least a dozen other Greek cities, 
including Patras, where protesters and police clashed for several hours.
For the first time since the death of 15-year-old Alexis Grigoropoulos, 
shot by a police officer on Saturday night, there was a serious outbreak 
of violence in one of Athens’s suburbs.
The funeral of the schoolboy in the southern neighborhood of Palaio 
Faliron was attended by an estimated 5,000 people and reignited tension 
between protesters and riot police who fought running battles in the 
area and neighboring Nea Smyrni.
The violence continued despite the efforts of Prime Minister Costas 
Karamanlis in particular to build bridges with the opposition parties in 
the hope of discouraging people from continuing with their protests.
Karamanlis met separately with the leader of each of the parliamentary 
parties, who in turn emerged from the talks to assert that the 
government could not cope with the crisis and that their respective 
parties are offering a way out.
“The only thing that this government can now offer is its resignation,” 
PASOK leader George Papandreou told his deputies after the meeting, as 
he called for elections to be held.
Apart from the divisions between the parties, there also seems to be a 
split in the government over how it should be handling this explosive 
situation. During a meeting of the Inner Cabinet yesterday, some 
ministers expressed disagreement with the decision of Interior Minister 
Prokopis Pavlopoulos to encourage the police to adopt a defensive stance.
A Public Issue poll carried out for Kathimerini and Skai indicated 
yesterday that about two-thirds of Greeks feel the government has not 
handled the situation well over the last few days. Karamanlis attempted 
to fend off criticism that his government has not been proactive enough 
by making a second public address in less than 36 hours. He urged 
political parties and the public to marginalize the rioters, whom he 
branded “enemies of democracy.”
Officers to wait for ballistic results before answering prosecutor’s 
questions
The police officer alleged to have shot 15-year-old Alexis Grigoropoulos 
on Saturday and his colleague who witnessed the incident are due to 
appear before a prosecutor today but are expected to refuse to answer 
questions until they are informed of the results of ballistic and 
toxicological tests.
According to celebrity lawyer Alexis Kougias, who yesterday took on the 
defense of the two officers, the policemen are unlikely to testify 
before next week.
Epaminondas Korkoneas, a 37-year-old special guard, has been accused of 
murdering the teenager but he claims that he fired only warning shots, 
one of which ricocheted on the ground and hit Grigoropoulos in the chest.
However, the officer’s version of events do not match witness accounts. 
Witnesses claim that Korkoneas shot straight at a group of youths and 
that the officers had not come under any kind of physical attack.
The ballistic tests are crucial to the case as experts who examined the 
bullet that lodged itself in Grigoropoulos’s heart should be able to 
tell whether it struck the ground or any object before entering his body.
If the bullet does not bear any such marks, Korkoneas’s defense will 
collapse.






http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2008/12/11/2003430817

Protesters throw fire bombs on day four of Greek riots

AGENCIES, ATHENS
Thursday, Dec 11, 2008, Page 1
Protesters threw fire bombs at police outside parliament yesterday 
during a general strike that paralyzed Greece and piled pressure on a 
conservative government reeling from the worst riots in decades.
“Government murderers!” demonstrators shouted, furious at the shooting 
of a teenager by police on Saturday that has sparked four days of 
violence fueled by simmering public anger at political scandals, rising 
unemployment and poverty.

Witnesses said the officer who fired the shot took deliberate aim, but 
his lawyer said yesterday that a ballistics report showed the boy was 
killed by an accidental ricochet.

“The investigation shows it was a ricochet ... In the end, this was an 
accident,” lawyer Alexis Kougias said. The ballistics report has yet to 
be officially published.

Thousands marched on parliament in a union rally against economic and 
social policy, which quickly turned violent. Police fired teargas and 
protesters responded with stones, bottles and sticks, a witness said.

The opposition socialist party has said the government, which has a 
one-seat majority and trails in opinion polls, has lost the trust of the 
people and has called for elections.

“Participation in the strike is total, the country has come to a 
standstill,” said Stathis Anestis, spokesman for the GSEE union 
federation which called the 24-hour stoppage.

Foreign and domestic flights were grounded, banks and schools were shut, 
and hospitals ran on emergency services as hundreds of thousands of 
Greeks walked off the job.

Unions say privatizations, tax rises and pension reform have worsened 
conditions, especially for the one-fifth of Greeks who live below the 
poverty line, precisely at a time when the global downturn is hurting 
the country.

Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis, who swept to power amid the 
euphoria of the 2004 Athens Olympics, appealed to political leaders for 
unity and urged unions to cancel yesterday’s rally. But his requests 
were flatly rejected by the opposition.

“He and his government are responsible for the widespread crisis that 
the country, that Greek society is experiencing,” socialist party 
spokesman George Papakonstantinou said.

One policeman has been charged with murder over the shooting of 
Alexandros Grigoropoulos, but has said he only fired in warning. The 
officer was due to appear before investigators with his colleague, who 
has been charged as an accomplice.

Rioting at the teenager’s death began in Athens on Saturday and quickly 
spread to at least 10 cities across the country. Greeks also protested 
in Paris, Berlin, London, The Hague and Cyprus.

The riots, Greece’s worst unrest since the aftermath of military rule in 
1974, have caused more than 20 million euros (US$25.9 million) in damage 
in wrecked cars, torched shops and banks, insurers say.

At the last count across Greece, 108 people had been arrested — with one 
of the most graphic attacks by looting rioters involving swords and 
slingshots stolen from a weapons shop, police said.










Tuesday DECEMBER 9



http://www.canada.com/topics/news/world/story.html?id=1051693

Tear gas, protests mar funeral of Athens teen


By John Hadoulis, Agence France-PresseDecember 9, 2008

Stones and tear gas cans lay on the street outside a law school in 
central Athens during a night of riots early Tuesday.
Photograph by: Aris Messinis/AFP/Getty Images, Getty Images
ATHENS - Security forces and protesters clashed Tuesday near the funeral 
of a schoolboy whose killing by police sparked four days of nationwide 
riots as the Greek opposition called for the government to resign.
Greece's president appealed for calm and Prime Minister Costas 
Karamanlis vowed to crack down on the unrest, but protesters again 
defied the government and there was new unrest in Athens and other cities.
Disturbances broke out on a main avenue near the cemetery in the Athens 
suburb where the funeral of 15-year-old Alexis Grigoropoulos was held.
Youths attacked police and set fire to garbage cans before being in turn 
fired at with tear gas, according to an AFP photographer.
Some youths also shouted anti-police slogans at the cemetery but most 
people respected the family's request for a solemn service.
In Athens, riot police fought demonstrators outside parliament and the 
main police headquarters, firing tear gas and dragging away protesters 
in a bid to clear the streets.
Demonstrators hurled petrol bombs and other missiles in a bid to breach 
a cordon around parliament and other official buildings.
There were also standoffs at two universities in central Athens which 
have been occupied by students. Police who have surrounded the building 
fired more tear gas in a bid to end the protests. Salonika in the north 
also saw new clashes.
Police said they made 87 arrests during a third night of rampaging 
violence on Monday by youths who looted Athens banks and stores. Some 
protesters staged attacks with swords and slingshots stolen from a 
weapons shop, they said.
Twelve more police were injured in Monday's clashes and at least 10 
people were hospitalised with respiratory problems from the cloud of 
tear gas that blanketed central Athens.
Burnt out rubbish bins, glass and paving slabs torn off sidewalks 
littered the streets and emergency services said fires were put out at 
49 office buildings, 47 shops, 14 banks, 20 cars and three ministries.
With the crisis increasingly turning into a political confrontation, 
thousands of students, teachers and left wing radicals joined Tuesday's 
rallies against the police action and the right wing government.
Around 2,000 protesters, led by the OLME teachers' union, marched on 
parliament carrying a large banner reading "Assassins, the government is 
the culprit".
And with a general strike looming Wednesday, socialist opposition leader 
George Papandreou called on the government to resign and seek a "public 
verdict" on the crisis.
"The government has lost public confidence," Papandreou told Pasok 
socialist party deputies. "The only thing it can give this country is to 
depart... to seek a public verdict so that the people can give a solution."
Karamanlis called a crisis cabinet meeting on Monday night and held new 
meetings with President Karolos Papoulias and leaders of allied and 
opposition political parties on Tuesday.
"We will tolerate no leniency in the attribution of responsibility," the 
prime minister said after talks with the president.
Papoulias meanwhile appealed for calm, calling on Greeks to "honour 
Alexis' memory peacefully."
Grigoropoulos was allegedly among a group of youths that had thrown 
stones at a squad car in a district of Athens that is known as a radical 
stronghold. The policeman who fired the shots and his partner have been 
arrested.
The government, already in trouble over the state of the economy and a 
series of political scandals, has been strongly criticised over the havoc.
"The whole country was delivered to chaos by an irresponsible 
government," the Eleftherotypia daily said in an editorial Tuesday.
The violence has showcased the organisational capacity of urban radicals 
and the failure of the government to crack down, critics said.
Many of the protesters say that the killing of Grigoropoulos was the 
latest example of police acting as if they were above the law.
"This is not just a random incident," said Magda, a 27-year-old hotel 
worker who was participating in a leftwing demonstration in Athens.
"It has to do with the role played by the security forces ... who enjoy 
impunity."
Lawyer Dimitris Beladis, who specialises in urban troubles, the killing 
"is the detonator of a sort of social explosion due to economic 
insecurity that affects many youths and those who are unemployed or 
badly paid."






http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2008489181_greece100.html?syndication=rss

December 10, 2008 at 12:00 AM | Page modified December 10, 2008 at 12:14 AM
Comments (1) E-mail article Print view
Greek protest symptom of governmental ills
A fourth day of rioting erupted here and around Greece on Tuesday, as a 
15-year-old boy killed by the police over the weekend was buried and the 
nation's shaky government grappled with how to contain to the worst 
civil unrest in decades.
By RACHEL DONADIO and ANTHEE CARASSAVA
The New York Times
PREV 1 of 2 NEXT


LEFTERIS PITARAKIS / AP
Protesters sit in central Athen's Syntagma Square on Tuesday. Athens and 
other Greek cities were ravaged by three successive nights of rioting 
after police shot a teen dead Saturday night.
ATHENS, Greece — A fourth day of rioting erupted here and around Greece 
on Tuesday, as a 15-year-old boy killed by the police over the weekend 
was buried and the nation's shaky government grappled with how to 
contain to the worst civil unrest in decades.
While clashes between the police and students have been common in Greece 
for decades, the ferocity of the reaction to the boy's death took the 
nation — and its crippled government — by surprise. Outrage over the 
death was widespread, fueled by what experts say is a growing 
frustration with unemployment and corruption in one of Western Europe's 
consistently underperforming economies, worsened by global recession.
But it was expressed in violence in the streets by student anarchists, 
who had been on the wane for the past several years but seemed revived 
by the crisis. Prime Minister Kostas Karamanlis, hanging onto power in 
Parliament by only one vote, seemed frozen, his government, once popular 
but now scandal-ridden, pushed a step closer to collapse.
"He's seriously troubled" about the riots, said Nicholas Karahalios, a 
strategy adviser to the prime minister. "Whereas before we were dealing 
with a political and economic crisis, now there's a third dimension 
attached to it: a security crisis which exacerbates the situation."
Another day of demonstrations was expected in a national strike that was 
called for Wednesday.
On Tuesday, bands of militant youths threw gasoline bombs and smashed 
shop windows in downtown Athens, as rioters battled with the police here 
in the capital and in Salonika, Greece's second-largest city. In the 
port city of Patras, business owners tried to protect their shops from 
rioters, while other rioters blocked the police station, the authorities 
said.
While widespread and violent, the protests on Tuesday were seen as 
slightly smaller than those the day before, when after dark hundreds of 
professed anarchists broke the windows of upscale shops, banks and 
five-star hotels in central Athens and burned a large Christmas tree in 
the plaza in front of Parliament.
At the Athens police headquarters, a spokesman said 12 police officers 
had been wounded in fighting with demonstrators that flared at 10 major 
flash points around the Greek capital on Monday night. He said 87 
protesters were arrested and 176 people detained and released because of 
the confrontations.
In the shattered city center on Tuesday, street-cleaning trucks tackled 
the mess.
Mayor Nikitas Kaklamanis advised Athenians not to drive into the city 
center and asked them to keep their trash indoors; rioters burned 160 
big garbage containers in the streets Monday night.
On Tuesday, the opposition leader, George Papandreou, a socialist, 
renewed his call for early elections. Yet it remained unclear whether 
the riots would cause the government to fall or whether the current 
stalemate would continue.
"What I foresee is a prolonged political crisis with no immediate 
results for two or three years," said George Kirtsos, a political 
commentator and the publisher of City Press, an independent newspaper. 
"In that time, the country will be going from bad to worse."
The authorities seem to fear that cracking down on the demonstrators may 
lead to other unintended deaths, provoking more rioting. Asked why the 
riots had not been contained, a spokesman for the national police, 
Panayiotis Stathis, said "violence cannot be fought with violence."
But Karamanlis faced criticism for not acting with a stronger hand 
earlier, with some suggesting that this gave credibility to the rioters' 
anger.
"They chose to show tolerance, which backfired," said Nikos Kostandaras, 
the editor of Kathimerini, a daily newspaper.
On Tuesday, schools and universities were closed, and thousands of 
teachers and students joined generally peaceful protests through Athens.
George Dimitriou, 22, a member of the agriculture students' union, said 
the teenager's death was an opportunity to protest other issues. "Our 
generation is facing a tougher future than our parents," Dimitriou said 
as he stood outside Athens University.
To many Greeks, scarred by the memories of military rule in the 1970s, 
the police remain a hostile remnant of the military junta.
While Greece has a comparatively high ratio of more than 45,000 police 
officers for 10.7 million people, in the popular imagination they are 
seen as ineffective and corrupt, so many view the police as a fair 
target for demonstrations.






http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/europe/news/article_1447385.php/Protestors_clash_with_police_near_funeral_of_teenager

Protestors clash with police near funeral of teenager
Europe News

High school students clash with riot police in front of the Greek 
parliament in Athens, Greece, on 09 December 2008. EPA/SIMELA PANTZARTZI
Dec 9, 2008, 15:25 GMT
Athens - Hundreds of youngsters clashed with riot police outside the 
Greek parliament Tuesday, and within sight of the funeral of the 
15-year-old whose shooting death by police set off a four-days of riots 
across the country.
Thousands of mourners gathered at the cemetery at the southern Athenian 
suburb of Paleo Faliro for the boy's funeral while just a few metres 
away 200 hooded youths clashed with police. Many of the hooded teenagers 
ran onto the streets and attacked banks, reports said.
Meanwhile, in downtown Athens, riot police attempted to fight back 
protestors as young as 10 years of age using tear gas to keep them from 
reaching the building.
Many demonstrators could be seen hurling firebombs and pieces of marble, 
and torching barricades in front of parliament in a violent press that 
threatens to topple the government.
In other parts of the city, students attacked four police stations in 
Nea Smyrni while elsewhere around the country, students clashed with 
police on the holiday island of Rhodes and in the northern city of 
Thessaloniki and the western city of Ioannina.
The funeral of 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos took place before 
nearly 3,000 mourners, many of them teenagers who gathered to pay their 
last respects and lay wreaths.
Schools and universities across the country closed their doors for three 
days.
The circumstances surrounding the teen's shooting still remains unclear 
but two officers involved have been arrested and charged with manslaughter.
A coroner's report shows the boy was shot in the chest.
Schools and universities across Greece were closed and hundreds of 
teachers, university lecturers and students rallied in central Athens.
Greece braced for more widespread protests and possible violence 
following the funeral. The shooting was seen as the last straw by many 
young Greeks whose economic future is bleak in a country with a high 
unemployment rate and low wages.
Unemployment is pegged at over 7 per cent and nearly 20 per cent of 
Greeks live below the poverty line, earning less than 600 euros (775 
dollars) a month.
'Everyone appears to have let our children down. Students have become 
more hostile towards us and to figures of authority,' said Christos 
Kittas, after resigning as the dean of Athens University after rioting 
spread to campuses.
Public unrest has grown with the conservative government's austerity 
measures, with unions regularly demonstrating against privatizations, 
pension reforms and the cost of living, and this latest incident could 
topple the unpopular conservative government.
The main opposition Socialist party leader George Papandreou called on 
the government to resign in an effort to end the crisis.
Three successive nights of rioting and looting have left hundreds of 
cars, stores and buildings charred and gutted across Greece and left 
many Athenians angry about the response of the government and police to 
the riots and their inability to stop the destruction.
Within hours of the shooting, riots erupted throughout Greece, starting 
from the capital Athens and quickly spreading to the northern port city 
of Thessaloniki, Volos, Thessalia and to the holiday islands of Corfu 
and Crete.
Almost every city across the country saw cars, buildings, banks and 
shops torched, looted or smashed.
Abroad, demonstrators attempted to take over the Greek embassies in 
London, Berlin and Cyprus. More than 60 people reportedly stormed the 
Greek embassy in Paris on Tuesday.






http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/greece/3686905/Greek-riots-Students-vow-fourth-day-of-protests.html

Greek riots: Students vow fourth day of protests
Greek students have promised another day of protests after hundreds of 
youths rioted across Athens in repsonse to the fatal police shooting of 
a schoolboy.

By Nick Squires
Last Updated: 12:49PM GMT 09 Dec 2008

The boy's funeral takes place later today, and police are bracing for 
more violence.
Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis has vowed to end the country's worst 
unrest in decades, but a government spokesman denied reports that they 
planned to declare martial law.
The unrest has left dozens injured and hundreds of buildings destroyed 
or badly damaged across the country. Greeks abroad also staged 
demonstrations in London, where five people were arrested, Berlin and 
Nicosia.
Ten people were treated in Athens hospitals for respiratory troubles 
caused by the blanket of tear gas over the city as the third day of 
battles for control of the streets went on into the night Monday, a 
health ministry spokesman said.
In the capital, protesters stoned the interior ministry, attacked police 
stations and clashed with riot police outside parliament.
They also set alight a major department store in the centre of the city 
and torched the official Christmas tree outside parliament.
There were street battles from Thessoliniki in the north to Crete in the 
south, with youths yelling "Cops! Pigs! Murderers!" at police.
Mr Karamanlis has vowed to end the riots, saying they were organised by 
extremists.
"All the dangerous and unacceptable events that occurred because of the 
emotions that followed the tragic incident cannot and will not be 
tolerated," he said.
The shooting of Alexandros Grigoropoulos, 15, was the catalyst for the 
violence, but it comes against a background of high youth unemployment, 
the rising cost of living, stalled pension reform and a widening gap 
between rich and poor.
The centre-right government is accused of doing little to help 
low-income Greeks who are in the grip of the financial crisis.
The government has also been criticised for a 28-billion-euro liquidity 
support package for Greek banks struggling to cope with the credit 
crunch - many Greeks feel that the banks do not need, or deserve, the 
money.
The riots are some of the worst Greece has experienced since the 
country's military dictatorship was toppled in 1974.
They began within hours of the teenager's shooting on Saturday night in 
the bohemian but often volatile Athens district of Exarchia. Two police 
officers have been arrested and one has been charged with murder.
About 30 civilians have been treated for minor injuries in hospitals 
around the country and Athens police said 37 policemen were hurt in the 
capital over the weekend.
Running battles between riot police firing tear gas and about 400 
secondary school students throwing rocks broke out on Monday in Veria, a 
town about 40 miles west of the port city of Thessaloniki.
In Chania, a Crete town popular with British holidaymakers, gangs of 
school students threw broken chairs, rocks and pieces of wood at riot 
police, who responded with tear gas.
On Rhodes, students pelted a local police station with various 
projectiles, prompting officers to fire tear gas.
Fierce debate swirled around the circumstances of the teenager's death. 
The officer accused of the shooting said he fired warning shots to scare 
off a gang of youths and that the bullet ricocheted off the pavement, 
but witnesses told Greek reporters that he deliberately took aim at the 
boy.
Mr Karamanlis' increasingly unpopular conservatives have a majority of 
one seat in the 300-member Parliament. The opposition Socialists are 
ahead in opinion polls for the first time in eight years.
Greece is bracing for more violence on Wednesday, when a nationwide 
strike over pension reform and the government's lacklustre response to 
the financial crisis are expected to bring the country to a standstill.
All flights in and out of the country will be stopped.
The unrest spread to Greek diplomatic missions abroad. In London, 
demonstrators pulled down the Greek flag, set it ablaze and raised the 
red-and-black anarchists' banner at the Greek Embassy.
Police officers were forced to block off the street and arrested five 
people.
In Berlin, 15 youths occupied the Greek consulate, raising a banner 
describing the shooting as "murder".






http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_world/view/395131/1/.html

Protests continue in Athens student district after looters' rampage
Posted: 09 December 2008 1603 hrs

A firefighter tries to extinguish the fire of a building in Monastiraki 
area central Athens, Greece

ATHENS: Tension continued Tuesday in Athens as demonstrators and police 
faced off in the student district after a night of urban violence, the 
third since the fatal police shooting of a schoolboy.

About 100 youths holed up in the polytechnic college near the national 
archaeological museum continued to badger the security forces, who 
countered with tear gas, a police source said.

But calm returned to the rest of the city centre, the scene until the 
small hours Tuesday of clashes, vandalism and looting of dozens of 
shops, banks and public buildings in an atmosphere rendered insufferable 
by tear gas.

Tension also dropped in Salonika to the north and the other cities hit 
by a wave of destruction and looting Monday night -- Patras in the 
Peloponnese, Larissa in the centre, Canee in Crete and Ioannina in the 
north west.

Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis called a cabinet crisis meeting late 
Monday as police fired volleys of tear gas in a bid to clear the centre 
of the Greek capital.

Karamanlis vowed to end the country's worst unrest in decades but a 
government spokesman denied reports that the government planned to 
declare martial law despite fresh student protests planned Tuesday.

The unrest has left dozens injured and hundreds of buildings destroyed 
or badly damaged across the country. Greeks abroad also staged 
demonstrations in London, where five people were arrested, Berlin and 
Nicosia.

Ten people were treated in Athens hospitals for respiratory troubles 
caused by the blanket of tear gas over the city as the third day of 
battles for control of the streets went on into the night Monday, a 
health ministry spokesman said.

After the end of a demonstration by left-wing activists against the 
death of 15-year-old Alexis Grigoropoulos, groups of youths spread out 
across the centre of the city.

Hooded and helmeted youths roamed the plush Kolonaki district, smashing 
stores near the Mexican embassy and British Council building before 
retreating. Protesters set fire to the lobby of the Hotel Athens Plaza 
on central Constitution Square.

In Salonika, a policeman was wounded by a firebomb and hundreds of 
youths attacked cars and looted dozens of stores. The unrest also went 
on into the night in Greece's second biggest city.

Students have called their own rally in Athens on Tuesday to protest at 
the killing of the teenager during incidents with police on Saturday. A 
general strike on Wednesday, originally intended to protest against the 
government, could become a new focus of the unrest.

As despairing traders sifted through the wreckage left by weekend 
rioting, Karamanlis appeared on national television to denounce "the 
extremist elements who exploited the tragedy.

"The unacceptable and dangerous events cannot and will not be 
tolerated," said the conservative prime minister, whose popularity 
ratings have plummeted in recent months because of the state of the 
economy and a number of scandals.

At the end of the emergency cabinet meeting Interior Minister Prokopis 
Pavlopoulos defended police action against the riots saying it was 
intended to "protect human life and property".

But he added: "I am not satisfied and I apologise to the people."

Several universities in Athens and Salonika were ordered closed and the 
education ministry said high schools would also remain closed on Tuesday 
in tribute to the slain boy.

Greek police have arrested two officers involved in the shooting of the 
teenager in the Athens district of Exarchia on Saturday.

Grigoropoulos was among youths who had allegedly thrown stones at a 
police car in the Exarchia district of Athens. One of the two officers 
left his vehicle to fire three times at the teenager, who was hit in the 
chest, witnesses said. He was confirmed dead in a nearby hospital.

Epaminondas Korkoneas, 37, who allegedly fired the shots, and his patrol 
partner Vassilis Saraliotis, 31, were both detained.

Exarchia is a rebellious neighbourhood in central Athens, which is 
widely known as an "anarchist stronghold".

In 1985 another 15-year-old, Michalis Kaltezas, was shot by a police 
officer, triggering violent clashes in Exarchia, which was also the 
scene of student protests in 1973, which led to the fall of the 
country's military dictatorship in 1974.







http://www.voanews.com/english/archive/2008-12/2008-12-09-voa12.cfm?CFID=164730503&CFTOKEN=24952239&jsessionid=6630b1e7746abd7a6aff446706b15486cd25

Widespread Protests Continue in Greece
By Nathan Morley
Nicosia
09 December 2008
Demonstrations and protests over the death of a Greek teenager, who was 
shot by a police officer on Saturday, have continued throughout Greece 
and even spread to foreign capitals like London, Nicosia and Berlin.

Four days after the shooting, the protests show no sign of abating.

Angry crowds gathered outside the parliament in the center of Athens - 
the gathering climaxed as the funeral was held for the teenager whose 
death has sparked the nationwide rioting.


Mourners attend the funeral of 15- year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos in 
suburban Athens, 09 Dec 2008
Thousands of mourners also attended his funeral in the south of Athens, 
with police officers having to be brought in from cities from across the 
region to help control the crowds.

Security forces used tear gas to disperse the stone-throwing protesters, 
many of whom vowed to continue their protests.

All television and radio networks broadcast the funeral and many 
commentators said they anticipated more violence in the coming days.

Harris Tzanis, a reporter with the Athens News Agency, told VOA News 
that such incidents had not been seen in Greece for decades and were a 
source of major concern.

"People are really uneasy, there is queasiness in the air - if that 
makes any sense. This caused unprecedented - you know we keep using this 
word, but there is really no way around it, unprecedented violence - 
street violence, urban violence in the country. We have never seen that 
before," he said.

The prime minister earlier held emergency talks with the president, 
while the main opposition party has demanded that the government resign.

Socialist opposition leader George Papandreou said the government has 
lost the Greek people's trust and called for snap elections to be held.

This woman summed up the feelings of many Greeks who have lost all 
confidence in the government.

"I do not expect anything - I want change," she said.

Tzanis said what had shocked most citizens in Greece, a country which is 
no stranger to violence, was the level of unrest and the uncertainty 
about the future.

"The violence here in Athens is actually 10 times worse than we have 
seen it before," said Tzanis.

Scuffles and minor demonstrations were also reported across Europe. In 
Cyprus, hundreds of students gathered to protest, with police saying 
they arrested four people.

Greece's ongoing instability has sparked public discontent at the 
country's recent economic slump and rising unemployment levels.







http://www.dw-world.de/dw/function/0,,12215_cid_3860831,00.html

| 09.12.2008 | 14:00 UTC
New protests in Athens ahead of teenager's funeral.
Hundreds of protestors clashed with police outside Greece's parliament 
ahead of the funeral of the teenager shot by police on Saturday. 
Buildings have been torched and dozens of people injured in four days of 
rioting following the death of the fifteen-year-old boy. His funeral is 
due to begin within the hour in a south Athens suburb. He was allegedly 
among a group of youths that had thrown stones at a squad car in a 
district of Athens that is known for its anarchist elements. The 
policeman who fired the shots and his partner have been arrested. 
Greece's socialist opposition leader George Papandreou has called for 
early elections accusing the government of worsening economic hardships 
and not being able to protect the public.






http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/245417,protestors-police-clash-in-athens-residential-areas--summary.html

Protestors, police clash in Athens residential areas - Summary

Posted : Tue, 09 Dec 2008 17:54:16 GMT
Author : DPA

Athens - Hundreds of youngsters clashed with riot police in residential 
areas across Athens Tuesday after the funeral of a 15-year-old whose 
shooting death by police sparked four-days of riots across Greece. 
Thousands of mourners gathered at the cemetery at the southern Athenian 
suburb of Paleo Faliro for the boy's funeral while just a few metres 
away hundreds of youths clashed with police.
Residents said they heard gunshots as police fired tear gas to dispel 
the youths who threw firebombs and rocks and set trash cans on fire in 
the suburbs near the site of the funeral. Dozens of shops and banks were 
destroyed in the clashes.
Angry residents could be seen from their balconies yelling at police to 
stop firing gas in the residential area.
Hundreds of students fought running battles with forces at the 
Polytechnic and Economic Universities in central Athens, where police 
are forbidden to set foot according to Greek law.
Students clashed with police in other parts of the city such as Nea 
Smyrni students battled officers on the holiday island of Rhodes and in 
the northern city of Thessaloniki as well as the western cities of 
Patras and Ioannina.
The funeral of 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos took place before 
more than 5,000 mourners, many of them teenagers who gathered to pay 
their last respects and lay wreaths. The thousands applauded as the body 
was carried out of the church in a flower-covered white coffin.
The circumstances surrounding the teen's shooting still remain unclear 
but two officers involved have been arrested and charged with manslaughter.
A coroner's report shows the boy was shot in the chest.
Schools and universities across Greece were closed and hundreds of 
teachers, university lecturers and students rallied in central Athens.
The shooting was seen as the last straw by many young Greeks whose 
economic future is bleak in a country with a high unemployment rate and 
low wages.
Unemployment is pegged at over 7 per cent and nearly 20 per cent of 
Greeks live below the poverty line, earning less than 600 euros (775 
dollars) a month.
"Everyone appears to have let our children down. Students have become 
more hostile towards us and to figures of authority," said Christos 
Kittas, after resigning as the dean of Athens University after rioting 
spread to campuses.
Public unrest has grown with the conservative government's austerity 
measures, with unions regularly demonstrating against privatizations, 
pension reforms and the cost of living, and this latest incident could 
topple the unpopular conservative government.
The prime minister appealed earlier in the day for the country's two 
largest unions to cancel a planned 24-hour strike on Wednesday, fearing 
violence would escalate for a fifth straight day. The unions said they 
would go ahead with the planned protests.
The main opposition Socialist party leader George Papandreou called on 
the government to resign in an effort to end the crisis.
Four successive nights of rioting and looting have left hundreds of 
cars, stores and buildings charred and gutted across Greece and left 
many Athenians angry about the response of the government and police to 
the riots and their inability to stop the destruction.
Within hours of the shooting, riots erupted throughout Greece, starting 
from the capital Athens and quickly spreading to the northern port city 
of Thessaloniki, Volos, Thessalia and to the holiday islands of Corfu 
and Crete.
Almost every city across the country saw cars, buildings, banks and 
shops torched, looted or smashed.
Reports said rioters have damaged or destroyed more than 250 stores and 
70 banks in Athens, while 25 buildings were damaged by fires. Another 
100 stores were damaged in Thessaloniki.
Police have made 157 arrests across Greece and 108 in Athens.
Abroad, demonstrators attempted to take over the Greek embassies in 
London, Berlin and Cyprus. More than 60 people reportedly stormed the 
Greek embassy in Paris on Tuesday.







http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/12/414784.html

Greece - Fascists attack protesters in Patras!
anon1 | 09.12.2008 19:34
Fascists attack protesters in Patras!

PATRAS

CONFIRMED: The anarchist block was attacked and chased by riot police 
and fascists. UNCONFIRMED: It is rumored that the fascists were 
transported from Athens and given tear gas.

ATHENS

Heavy clashes with the police outside the NTUA (National Technical 
University of Athens) continue. The situation at the Economics 
University is calm.


from http://www.occupiedlondon.org/blog/
anon1






http://www.setimes.com/cocoon/setimes/xhtml/en_GB/newsbriefs/setimes/newsbriefs/2008/12/09/nb-02

Protestors clash with police in Athens ahead of teen's funeral
09/12/2008
ATHENS, Greece -- Hundreds of protestors threw rocks and bottles at riot 
police outside the parliament building Tuesday (December 9th) ahead of 
the funeral of Alexandros Grigoropoulos, a 15-year-old whom police shot 
dead on Saturday. The shooting triggered the country's worst street 
riots in decades, with dozens of people injured in clashes between 
protesters and police and hundreds of buildings destroyed or badly 
damaged. Late Monday, Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis called a cabinet 
crisis meeting to discuss urgent measures to restore order. In a TV 
address afterwards, he again appealed for calm and pledged to punish 
those responsible for the boy's death. Opposition parties have 
criticised the cabinet for failing to protect businesses and the public 
from the riots.
Schools and universities across Greece closed Monday and Tuesday as 
students joined the protests and boycotted classes.







http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1865326,00.html?xid=rss-topstories

Greek Riots Show No Signs of Abating
By Emmanouil Karatarakis / Athens Tuesday, Dec. 09, 2008

A protester gestures at riot police during clashes in Athens after the 
funeral of teenager Alexandros Grigoropoulos, who was shot dead by 
police. Athens and other Greek cities have been ravaged by three 
successive nights of rioting since the shooting
Thanassis Stavrakis / AP

"Karamanlis or tanks." That was the choice that Konstantinos Karamanlis 
posed to Greeks in 1974 upon his return from self-imposed exile in Paris 
after the overthrow of the country's military junta. The popular former 
Prime Minister's triumphant return to Athens to lead the country's 
transition back to democracy was followed by his sweeping election 
victory and a place in history as one of modern Greece's great statesmen.
Now, 34 years later, Karamanlis' nephew Costas Karamanlis is Prime 
Minister as Greece faces its worst riots in a generation. Radical youths 
and riot police clashed Tuesday for a fourth straight day following the 
Dec. 6 fatal shooting of a 15-year-old by Athens police. During a 
Cabinet meeting Monday night, Karamanlis considered a proposal to 
declare a state of emergency, and the possibility that troops could 
return to the streets of Athens for the first time since the military 
dictatorship of 1967-74. (See pictures of Athens in flames.)
For now at least, the 52-year-old Prime Minister has ruled out military 
intervention, hoping the police can restore order without the 
government's having to resort to martial law. Professor Thanos Dokos, 
head of the Athens-based think tank ELIAMEP, says that "even the thought 
of employing the Greek army to quell the civil disturbances ... is 
preposterous." Beyond the historical burden the armed forces carry in 
Greece, Dokos says "they are neither trained nor equipped for riot control."
Critics say that the government has lost control over the tactical 
management of the crisis, with radical anarchists burning shops, cars, 
banks and even government buildings, including the Hellenic Parliament 
Foundation and the Foreign Ministry's diplomatic academy. Some 320 
stores, 50 banks and a number of other civilian buildings have been 
damaged or destroyed in Athens, with another 100 stores in the northern 
city of Thessaloníki targeted. There have also been outbreaks of 
violence in several small cities and on the island of Corfu.
In Athens' Syntagma square, just across from Parliament, protesters set 
ablaze a large Christmas tree. Today, more clashes took place in the 
square and the surrounding streets as police used tear gas to break up a 
large group of protestors throwing rocks at the Parliament building. 
Later in the afternoon clashes resumed in downtown Athens with youth 
groups barricaded in the Athens Polytechnic School, near the Exarchia 
district, setting up roadblocks outside the school and burning cars and 
bus stops.
In an Athens seaside suburb Tuesday afternoon, some 3,000 people 
attended the funeral of Andreas-Alexandros Grigoropoulos, whose death 
sparked the riots. Shortly after the funeral, rioters hurled rocks and 
oranges at police forces near the cemetery.
The Prime Minister has said that full justice will be pursued in the 
death of the teenager, but also emphasized that there will be no 
leniency for the rioters. Still, the 45,000-strong police seem unable to 
find a way to quell the unrest. Dokos says the situation has spiraled 
out of control because "the government made the assumption that police 
intervention would have inflamed the crisis even further." In a 
prime-time televised address to the nation, Costas Karamanlis called 
those who engage in acts of violence and vandalism "enemies of 
democracy" and asked for unity in order to isolate the radical elements.
The political consequences of failure for Karamanlis may be steep. 
Already his government was hanging on with a razor-thin majority in 
Parliament ahead of a crucial budget vote later this month.
George Papandreou, leader of the center-left opposition, accused the 
government Tuesday of being unable to handle the riots and said it has 
lost the people's trust. After a somber meeting with the Prime Minister 
early this morning, Papandreou said that "the best thing they [the 
Government] can do is resign and let the people find a solution ... We 
will protect the public."
A previously announced labor strike and further protest marches are 
planned for Wednesday. With the Government facing a public-order problem 
at the same time that the economy is suffering, the Prime Minister must 
find a way to halt his party's freefall in polls and try to convince the 
Greek people that his center-right government is the only real hope for 
stability and security. In rhetorical terms, he might even hark back to 
his uncle with a new choice: "Karamanlis or chaos." Lately, though, few 
can see the difference.






http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/new-riots-erupt-around-greek-funeral-1058333.html

New riots erupt around Greek funeral
AP
Tuesday, 9 December 2008

ARIS MESSINIS/AFP/Getty Images
Riot police are attacked with petrol bombs during a night of riots in Athens
• enlarge
Riot police fought running battles with mourners after the funeral today 
of the Greek teenager whose shooting by officers set off waves of 
rioting across the country.
Police fired tear gas to dispel dozens of youths throwing stones and 
sticks and setting rubbish bins on fire near the burial of 15-year-old 
Alexandros Grigoropoulos, whose death on Saturday sparked the rioting. 
Dozens of locals gathered on the streets, shouting at police to stop 
firing gas in the residential area.
Some 6,000 people attended the funeral, applauding as the body was 
carried out of the church in a flower-covered white coffin.
Related articles
• Riots spread in third day of violence
Schools and universities across Greece were closed and hundreds of 
teachers, university lecturers and students rallied in central Athens, 
where hundreds of teenagers threw rocks and scuffled with officers. 
Fighting also continued in the northern city of Thessaloniki.
"Everyone has let our children down ... Every day I see that students 
are becoming more hostile toward us and figures of authority," said 
Christos Kittas, who resigned as the dean of Athens University after the 
rioting spread to campuses.
Tension between security forces and leftist groups is deeply rooted in 
Greece, dating back to the seven-year military dictatorship that was 
toppled by a student uprising in 1974.
The groups have now evolved into various factions that claim to fight 
trends ranging from globalization to the growth of police surveillance 
cameras.
Police said rioters damaged or destroyed 200 stores and 50 banks in 
Athens overnight, while 20 buildings were damaged by fires, including 
city centre hotels that were temporarily evacuated. A further 100 stores 
were damaged in Thessaloniki.
There was also rioting in Crete, the holiday island of Corfu, and in 
other areas around Greece.
Riot police used tear gas when attacked by youths but stood back as they 
smashed windows and torched stores along Athens' main commercial streets.
Greece's interior minister insisted police had successfully protected 
human life.
The Bank of Greece announced a 12-month delay on interest payments for 
loans by shopkeepers affected by the rioting. But the Athens Traders 
Association encouraged its members to sue the government, saying police 
had failed to protect them.
The circumstances surrounding the boy's shooting are still unclear, but 
the two officers involved have been arrested; one has been charged with 
murder and the other as an accomplice. A coroner's report shows the boy 
was shot in the chest.
The impact of Greek street unrest is usually limited to graffiti and 
late-night firebomb attacks on targets such as stores and cash machines.
But the latest riots have besieged the administration of Prime Minister 
Costas Karamanlis who is facing a wave of discontent and sometimes 
violent demonstrations over policies including unpopular reforms to the 
country's pension system, privatisation's and loosening state control of 
higher education.
"It's very simple - we want the government to fall. This boy's death was 
the last straw for us," Petros Constantinou, an organiser with the 
Socialist Workers Party, said after a protest in central Athens.
"This government wants the poor to pay for all the country's problems - 
never the rich - and they keep those who protest in line with police 
oppression."
Opposition socialist leader George Papandreou called for early 
elections, saying the governing conservatives were incapable of 
defending the public from rioters.
The government has a single-seat majority in the 300-member Parliament 
and opposition parties blame hands-off policing for encouraging the 
worst rioting the country has seen in decades.
"The government cannot handle this crisis and has lost the trust of the 
Greek people," Mr Papandreou said. "The best thing it can do is resign 
and let the people find a solution ... we will protect the public."
Even if the opposition Socialists were to come to power, they would find 
themselves faced with pressure to reform the economy and pensions.






http://www.thenational.ae/article/20081209/FOREIGN/506636230/1002/rss

Clashes near schoolboy's funeral
• Last Updated: December 09. 2008 7:47PM UAE / December 9. 2008 3:47PM GMT

A protester kicks a tear gas canister in front of riot police, as 
rioting continued for a fourth day in Athens. Petros Giannakouris / AP
Security forces and protestors clashed Tuesday near the funeral of a 
schoolboy whose killing by police sparked four days of nationwide riots 
as the Greek opposition called for the government to resign.

The Greek president appealed for calm and the prime minister, Costas 
Karamanlis, vowed to crack down on the unrest, but protesters again 
defied the government and there was new unrest in Athens and other cities.
Disturbances broke out on a main avenue near the cemetery in the Athens 
suburb where the funeral of 15-year-old Alexis Grigoropoulos was held.

Youths attacked police and set garbage cans ablaze before being fired at 
with tear gas, according to witnesses.
Some youths also shouted anti-police slogans at the cemetery but most 
people respected the family’s request for a solemn service.

In Athens, riot police fought demonstrators outside parliament and the 
main police headquarters, firing tear gas and dragging away protesters 
in a bid to clear the streets.

Demonstrators hurled petrol bombs and other missiles in a bid to breach 
a cordon around parliament and other official buildings.

There were also standoffs at two universities in central Athens which 
have been occupied by students. Police who have surrounded the building 
fired more tear gas in a bid to end the protests. Salonika in the north 
also saw new clashes.
Police said they made 87 arrests during a third night of rampaging 
violence on Monday by youths who looted Athens banks and stores. Some 
protesters staged attacks with swords and slingshots stolen from a 
weapons shop, they said.
Twelve more policemen were injured in Monday’s clashes and at least 10 
people were hospitalised with respiratory problems from the cloud of 
tear gas that blanketed central Athens.

Burned out rubbish bins, glass and paving slabs torn off sidewalks 
littered the streets and emergency services said fires were put out at 
49 office buildings, 47 shops, 14 banks, 20 cars and three ministries.

With the crisis increasingly turning into a political confrontation, 
thousands of students, teachers and left wing radicals joined Tuesday’s 
rallies against the police action and the right wing government.

Around 2,000 protesters, led by the OLME teachers’ union, marched on 
parliament carrying a large banner reading “Assassins, the government is 
the culprit”.

And with a general strike looming on Wednesday, the socialist opposition 
leader George Papandreou called on the government to resign and seek a 
“public verdict” on the crisis.

“The government has lost public confidence,” Mr Papandreou told Pasok 
socialist party deputies. “The only thing it can give this country is to 
depart... to seek a public verdict so that the people can give a solution.”

Mr Karamanlis called a crisis cabinet meeting on Monday night and held 
new meetings with President Karolos Papoulias and leaders of allied and 
opposition political parties on Tuesday.

“We will tolerate no leniency in the attribution of responsibility,” the 
prime minister said after talks with the president.

Mr Papoulias meanwhile appealed for calm, calling on Greeks to “honour 
Alexis’ memory peacefully.”

Mr Grigoropoulos was allegedly among a group of youths that had thrown 
stones at a squad car in a district of Athens that is known as a radical 
stronghold. The policeman who fired the shots and his partner have been 
arrested.

The government, already in trouble over the state of the economy and a 
series of political scandals, has been strongly criticised over the havoc.

*Reuters






http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/buildings-burn-as-greek-riots-escalate-1058333.html

New riots erupt around Greek funeral
AP
Tuesday, 9 December 2008

ARIS MESSINIS/AFP/Getty Images
Riot police are attacked with petrol bombs during a night of riots in Athens
• enlarge
Riot police fought running battles with mourners after the funeral today 
of the Greek teenager whose shooting by officers set off waves of 
rioting across the country.
Police fired tear gas to dispel dozens of youths throwing stones and 
sticks and setting rubbish bins on fire near the burial of 15-year-old 
Alexandros Grigoropoulos, whose death on Saturday sparked the rioting. 
Dozens of locals gathered on the streets, shouting at police to stop 
firing gas in the residential area.
Some 6,000 people attended the funeral, applauding as the body was 
carried out of the church in a flower-covered white coffin.
Related articles
• Riots spread in third day of violence
Schools and universities across Greece were closed and hundreds of 
teachers, university lecturers and students rallied in central Athens, 
where hundreds of teenagers threw rocks and scuffled with officers. 
Fighting also continued in the northern city of Thessaloniki.
"Everyone has let our children down ... Every day I see that students 
are becoming more hostile toward us and figures of authority," said 
Christos Kittas, who resigned as the dean of Athens University after the 
rioting spread to campuses.
Tension between security forces and leftist groups is deeply rooted in 
Greece, dating back to the seven-year military dictatorship that was 
toppled by a student uprising in 1974.
The groups have now evolved into various factions that claim to fight 
trends ranging from globalization to the growth of police surveillance 
cameras.
Police said rioters damaged or destroyed 200 stores and 50 banks in 
Athens overnight, while 20 buildings were damaged by fires, including 
city centre hotels that were temporarily evacuated. A further 100 stores 
were damaged in Thessaloniki.
There was also rioting in Crete, the holiday island of Corfu, and in 
other areas around Greece.
Riot police used tear gas when attacked by youths but stood back as they 
smashed windows and torched stores along Athens' main commercial streets.
Greece's interior minister insisted police had successfully protected 
human life.
The Bank of Greece announced a 12-month delay on interest payments for 
loans by shopkeepers affected by the rioting. But the Athens Traders 
Association encouraged its members to sue the government, saying police 
had failed to protect them.
The circumstances surrounding the boy's shooting are still unclear, but 
the two officers involved have been arrested; one has been charged with 
murder and the other as an accomplice. A coroner's report shows the boy 
was shot in the chest.
The impact of Greek street unrest is usually limited to graffiti and 
late-night firebomb attacks on targets such as stores and cash machines.
But the latest riots have besieged the administration of Prime Minister 
Costas Karamanlis who is facing a wave of discontent and sometimes 
violent demonstrations over policies including unpopular reforms to the 
country's pension system, privatisation's and loosening state control of 
higher education.
"It's very simple - we want the government to fall. This boy's death was 
the last straw for us," Petros Constantinou, an organiser with the 
Socialist Workers Party, said after a protest in central Athens.
"This government wants the poor to pay for all the country's problems - 
never the rich - and they keep those who protest in line with police 
oppression."
Opposition socialist leader George Papandreou called for early 
elections, saying the governing conservatives were incapable of 
defending the public from rioters.
The government has a single-seat majority in the 300-member Parliament 
and opposition parties blame hands-off policing for encouraging the 
worst rioting the country has seen in decades.
"The government cannot handle this crisis and has lost the trust of the 
Greek people," Mr Papandreou said. "The best thing it can do is resign 
and let the people find a solution ... we will protect the public."
Even if the opposition Socialists were to come to power, they would find 
themselves faced with pressure to reform the economy and pensions.






http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/uncategorized/greek-rioting-abates-after-three-days-unrest-continues_100128755.html

Greek rioting abates after three days, unrest continues
December 9th, 2008 - 12:25 pm ICT by IANS -
Athens, Dec 9 (DPA) The situation in the Greek capital Athens calmed 
down early Tuesday after three days of heavy rioting, triggered by the 
fatal police shooting of a teenager, media reports said, but the unrest 
was likely to continue.Violence was concentrated in the area around the 
Polytechnic University, where several dozen hooded youths were still 
holding out, but police remained on high alert.
A government spokesperson denied reports that a country-wide state of 
emergency was to be declared.
Late Monday, Athens was ablaze and gripped by chaos while dozens of 
other cities were crippled for a third straight day by arson and looting 
in the worst riots in decades.
Thick black smoke, flames and teargas had engulfed central Athens as 
students set fire to several buildings including the offices of state 
airline Olympic Airways, the foreign ministry across from Parliament, a 
luxury department store, Greece’s main law school and two bank headquarters.
Hooded protestors, mostly in their teens, clearly had control of the 
city by late Monday and were looting stores and taking anything that 
could be used as a weapon.
Police have arrested more than 50 rioters, while over 100 people were 
injured in the violence, media reports said.
Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis planned to hold an emergency meeting 
with President Karolos Papoulias and the leaders of Greece’s political 
parties later Tuesday.






http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/dec/09/greece-athens-riots

Third night of rioting sweeps Greek cities
• Helena Smith, Athens
• The Guardian, Tuesday 9 December 2008
Costas Karamanlis, Greece's prime minister, yesterday accused 
"extremists" of exploiting the fatal police shooting of a teenage boy, 
as rioting youths brought a third night of chaos to Greek cities. He 
pledged to take "immediate" action to compensate those whose properties 
had been destroyed in the worst disturbances to hit Greece since the 
collapse of military rule in 1974, saying: "The state has a duty to 
protect society and the citizen."
But last night, thousands took to the streets again, burning shops and 
buildings and even setting alight a Christmas tree in the centre of 
Athens. One hotel's windows were smashed and guests evacuated. 
Demonstrators threw rocks and petrol bombs at riot police.
The rioting also intensified in the country's second-largest city, 
Salonika, and for the first time spread to Trikala, a city in the 
country's agricultural heartland.
The riots were triggered by an incident late on Saturday in which 
15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos was shot dead by a policeman, 
allegedly at point-blank range, after youths were said to have thrown 
objects at a patrolling police car in the gritty Athenian district of 
Exarchia.
Karamanlis warned protesters that he would not tolerate "unacceptable 
and dangerous events prompted by the tragic incident". But the tension 
showed no signs of abating, with riots spreading to towns previously 
unaffected. Greek youths even occupied a consulate in Berlin.
The Pasok opposition leader, George Papandreou, lashed out at the ruling 
New Democrats - who are in power with a wafer-thin majority - for being 
out of touch with reality. "The whole country, every citizen, is 
exasperated with a government that doesn't understand the real problems 
of the people," he said. "Everyone is saying enough is enough."
The shooting of the schoolboy on Saturday quickly laid bare the 
simmering tensions between the police and members of alleged anarchist 
groups, who retaliated by going on the rampage. But the teenager's death 
has given vent to a deeper anger that has also been mounting in Greece.
With many struggling to make ends meet, and one in five living beneath 
the poverty line, there is growing anger at the tough fiscal policies of 
a government determined to reach the prescriptive benchmarks set out by 
Brussels and reign in budget deficits. The disaffection has been 
exacerbated by allegations of corruption and a series of scandals 
implicating members of Karamanlis's inner circle.
Indicative of the mood, high school students have rushed to join the 
protests, stoning police in clashes in front of the Athens parliament 
yesterday, and on islands and mainland towns nationwide.
"A lot of teenagers identify with Grigoropoulos," said Christos Maltzos, 
an Athenian journalist. "For many, his death was the cherry on the cake. 
There's a whole generation out there who see their parents in debt and 
feel they have nothing to look forward to in the future. Fear and 
despair are what these riots are about."





http://tvnz.co.nz/view/page/2367098

Greeks riot for third day
Published: 7:47AM Tuesday December 09, 2008

Reuters
Thousands of rock-throwing youths staged running battles with police in 
central Athens in a third day of demonstrations at the police killing of 
a teenage boy which has unleashed anger at economic hardships.
Tear gas filled Syntagma square outside Greece's parliament as police 
clashed with left-wing demonstrators, beating some with batons and 
detaining others. Protests were reported in more than 10 cities across 
the nation of 11 million people, including Thessaloniki and the tourist 
islands of Crete and Corfu.
More than 130 shops have already been destroyed in the capital, crushing 
retailers' hope that Christmas would compensate for Greece's darkening 
economic outlook. Police have detained 35 people in Athens.
With a 24-hour general strike due on Wednesday against economic reforms, 
analysts said Greece's worst riots in decades looked set to continue and 
could threaten the conservative government, which has a one-seat 
parliamentary majority.
"Enough with this government, which doesn't understand the problems of 
this country," said George Papandreou, leader of socialist PASOK 
opposition party.
The socialists already held a strong lead in opinion polls before the 
riots, benefiting from disenchantment at the ruling New Democracy 
party's privatisations and pension reforms. Political analysts say an 
early election could be called next year.
Anger at the killing of 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos by a 
policeman on Saturday has even reached Greeks living overseas, who 
staged protests in London and Berlin.
Advertisement

As night fell on the Greek capital, thousands marched arm-in-arm through 
the city's main streets. Anarchists smashed car windows and chanted 
"Cops, Pigs, Murders". Some threw fire bombs at police and, for a third 
night, businesses burned and explosions rang out.
"Police have lost control. The dead kid was only an excuse. It seems the 
police are not on the side of the people, that's why people support the 
youths," said Alexandros, a teacher who declined to give his second name.
Worst riots for decades
The shooting angered Greek youths, resentful at a widening gap between 
rich and poor, made worse by the global credit crisis. Violence at 
student rallies and fire bomb attacks by anarchists are common, 
especially in Athens' Exarchia district where the boy was shot.
More than a dozen police stations in Athens were damaged by 
demonstrators, who also raided a small pro-government newspaper and 
broke into a weapons shop, emerging with ninja swords and knives. 
Hundreds of students occupied university buildings, playing 
cat-and-mouse with police who are forbidden to enter.
More than 50 people have been injured nationwide and millions of euros 
of property damaged. TV images showed one car parking lot in the Piraeus 
port where nine cars had been flipped on their roofs.
Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis expressed sorrow for the family of the 
dead boy but warned demonstrators to stop. The government would try to 
compensate property owners, he said.
"We will not tolerate unacceptable and dangerous events prompted by the 
tragic incident," he said on Monday, in his first public appearance 
since the riots began.
Thessaloniki also saw street battles between police and hundreds of 
protesters, who smashed shops and threw rocks at government offices. 
Clashes took place in Crete and Corfu as well as the cities of Volos, 
Komotini and Chania.
"If this continues, it could have a devastating effect on the government 
and on stability," said Anthony Livanios of pollster Alpha Metrics.
Two police officers have been charged over the shooting -- one with 
murder and the other as an accomplice. A police statement said one 
officer fired three shots after their car was attacked by 30 youths in 
Exarchia.
A police official said the officer had described firing warning shots, 
but witnesses told TV he took aim at the boy. A coroner's report on 
Monday said it was not possible to be sure.






http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/12/08/greece.riots/

December 9, 2008 -- Updated 0659 GMT (1459 HKT)

ATHENS, Greece (CNN) -- Authorities vowed to re-impose order after 
demonstrators rose up across Greece Monday in a third day of rioting 
over Saturday's killing of a 15-year-old boy that has left dozens 
injured and scores of properties destroyed.
"Under no circumstances will the government accept what is occurring," 
said Greek Interior Minister Prokopis Pavlopoulos. "We will do what is 
necessary."
It was unclear what would be necessary to placate the demonstrators. 
"We've just lost count of how many demonstrations are taking place now," 
a police spokesman in Athens told CNN.
Police said 34 civilians and 16 police officers were injured Monday in 
rioting that spread into new municipalities, including Trikala, Larissam 
and Veria.
Riots broke out Saturday in Thessaloniki and Athens, where police killed 
the teen. Watch the latest report on the rioting »
Demonstrators had torched three government buildings and three offices 
of the ruling conservative political party in downtown Athens, a 
National Fire Brigade spokesman told Greek state television. Watch as 
iReporter witnesses the clashes
Thirty-five cars and 160 trash containers also had been set ablaze, he 
said. See images of anarchy on Greek streets »
Demonstrators Monday barricaded streets in Athens and Thessaloniki and 
hurled gasoline bombs as they battled with police. Clouds of tear gas 
hung over the capital city as riot police continued to battle the 
hundreds of young self-styled anarchists rioting over the boy's death.
"Rage is what I feel for what has happened, rage, and that this cop who 
did it must see what it is to kill a kid and to destroy a life," a 
student in Athens told reporters Monday. Watch protesters clash with 
police »
In a nationally televised address broadcast on state television, Greek 
Prime Minister Kostas Karamanlis condemned the violence and promised to 
punish those responsible for Saturday's shooting.
He also announced a decision to drop plans to reimburse business owners 
affected by the rioting.
The police officer who fired the fatal shot has been charged with 
"manslaughter with intent" and suspended from duty, police said, adding 
that a second police officer was arrested Saturday on criminal accessory 
charges.
Government officials have condemned the shooting.
"An investigation is under way and those found responsible will be 
punished," said Pavlopoulos. "Measures will also be taken to avoid such 
incidents again in the future." iReport.com: Are you there? Share 
photos, video of rioting
On Monday, authorities conducted an autopsy on the teenage boy in an 
effort to answer questions about the circumstances of the shooting, but 
the boy's family has called in their own investigators to verify state 
findings, the Athens coroner told CNN.
The U.S. and British embassies issued warnings to employees and tourists 
on Sunday, instructing them to avoid downtown Athens and other major 
cities until rioting subsides.
Tourists in central Athens hotels were advised by hotel staff not to 
leave their rooms as police fanned out across the city.
"There are lots of burning bins and debris in the street and a huge 
amount of tear gas in the air, which we got choked with on the way back 
to our hotel," according to Joel Brown, a CNN senior press officer 
visiting Athens on Sunday.
A police statement about the teenage boy's death said the incident 
started when six young protesters pelted a police patrol car with 
stones. The teen was shot as he tried to throw a petrol bomb at the 
officers, police said.
Other angry teens converged on the site almost immediately.
Fighting between youths and police erupted elsewhere, including 
Thessaloniki, the country's second-largest city. Hundreds of young 
people took to the streets of the sprawling port city, finally 
barricading themselves behind the gates of a state university.
Authorities have been barred from entering university grounds since 
tanks crushed a 1973 student uprising protesting the ruling military 
junta. It was not clear what authorities would do about the 
demonstrators still holed up at the university.
No deaths have been reported since Saturday.
Police said Monday that 20 protesters had been rounded up for questioning.





http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,464185,00.html

Protesters Clash With Greek Police at Slain Teen's Funeral
Tuesday, December 09, 2008 | FoxNews.com

AP


Dec. 9: A protester kicks a tear gas canister to riot police as riots 
continued for a fourth day in the Greek capital.

THESSALONIKI, Greece — Rioters rampaged in Greek cities for a fourth day 
Tuesday in an explosion of rage that was triggered by the weekend police 
killing of a teenager — but has spread to an array of antiestablishment 
parties, threatening to topple the government at a time of deep anxiety 
over growing economic gloom.
Gangs of angry youth have looted and damaged hundreds of buildings, 
including banks and hotels, torched cars and shut down much of downtown 
Athens. On Tuesday, police fired tear gas at protesters after the dead 
teenager, 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos, was buried in a funeral 
attended by about 6,000 people.
Overnight, gangs of marauding masked youths roamed the streets, erecting 
burning barricades and pelting riot police with rocks and bottles.
High school students joined self-styled anarchists — a group with a 
history of nighttime arson attacks on businesses and cash machines. But 
the protests also drew in a variety of left-wing groups, most of whom 
did not participate in the destruction.
Click to view photos.
Opposition Socialist leader George Papandreou called for early 
elections, charging that the governing Conservatives were incapable of 
defending the public from rioters.
Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis is clinging to a single seat majority 
in the 300-member Parliament, meaning that just one defection would 
likely bring him down and spark elections that polls suggest the 
opposition would handily win.
The riots erupted at a time when the government is already facing public 
discontent over the state of the economy, the poor job prospects of 
students and a series of financial scandals that have badly rattled 
public confidence. However, the protesters have not articulated specific 
policy goals and the two leading parties are not far apart on the issues.
Greece is heavily dependent on tourism, which could decline as a result 
of the global economic crisis. It is, however, protected by its 
membership in the Euro-zone, meaning that it does not face a currency 
collapse like the one that engulfed Iceland.
Greece was torn by years of civil war between communists and right-wing 
nationalists in the wake of World War II, and was ruled by a military 
dictatorship from 1967 to 1974.
A student uprising succeeded in ending military rule but also left a 
legacy of activism and simmering tensions between the security 
establishment and a phalanx of deeply entrenched leftist groups that 
often protest against globalization and U.S. foreign policy in the 
Middle East and elsewhere.
The groups have now evolved into various mainly youth factions that 
claim to fight trends ranging from globalization to police surveillance 
cameras.
Karamanlis, who came to power in March 2004, has faced growing 
opposition and occasionally violent demonstrations over unpopular 
reforms to the country's pension system, privatization and the loosening 
of state control of higher education, which many students oppose because 
they feel it will undermine their degrees.
But even if the Socialists came to power, they would likely find 
themselves implementing many of the same reforms which are essential if 
the economy is to progress.
On Tuesday, police fired tear gas to dispel dozens of youths throwing 
stones and sticks and setting trash cans on fire near the funeral for 
Grigoropoulos, whose death Saturday sparked the rioting. Dozens of local 
residents gathered on the streets, shouting at police to stop firing gas 
in the residential area.
The clashes were less severe than the rioting over the past three nights.
Schools and universities across Greece were closed on the day of the 
funeral and hundreds of teachers, university lecturers and students 
rallied in central Athens, where hundreds of teenagers threw rocks and 
scuffled with officers. Fighting also continued in Thessaloniki.
"Everyone has let our children down ... Every day I see that students 
are becoming more hostile toward us and figures of authority," said 
Christos Kittas, who resigned as the dean of Athens University after the 
rioting spread to campuses.
Police said rioters damaged or destroyed 200 stores and 50 banks in 
Athens overnight, while 20 buildings were damaged by fires, including 
downtown hotels that were temporarily evacuated late Monday. A further 
100 stores were damaged in Thessaloniki.
There was also rioting in Crete, the holiday island of Corfu, and in 
other areas around Greece.
Riot police used tear gas when attacked by youths but stood back as they 
smashed windows and torched stores along Athens' main commercial streets.
Greece's interior minister insisted police had successfully protected 
human life, and Karamanlis said there would be no leniency for rioters.
On Tuesday, the Bank of Greece announced a 12-month delay on interest 
payments for loans by shopkeepers affected by the rioting. But the 
Athens Traders Association encouraged its members to sue the government, 
saying police had failed to protect them.
The circumstances surrounding Grigoropoulos' shooting are unclear, but 
the two officers involved have been arrested; one has been charged with 
murder and the other as an accomplice. A coroner's report shows the boy 
was shot in the chest.






http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,463406,00.html

Protesters Pelt Greek Police With Rocks Ahead of Teen's Funeral
Tuesday, December 09, 2008 | FoxNews.com

Reuters
Dec. 8: Athens' giant Christmas tree is set ablaze by young rioters in 
front of the Greek parliament.

ATHENS, Greece — Hundreds of teenage protesters pelted police with rocks 
and scuffled with officers in front of Parliament Tuesday before the 
funeral of a 15-year-old boy whose shooting by police set off three days 
of rioting across Greece.
Socialist leader George Papandreou called for early elections, saying 
the conservative government could no longer defend the public from rioters.
The government has a single-seat majority in the 300-member Parliament 
and opposition parties blame hands-off policing for encouraging the 
worst rioting the country has seen in decades.
"The government cannot handle this crisis and has lost the trust of the 
Greek people," Papandreou said.
Click to view photos.
The funeral of 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos was to be held in a 
seaside suburb of Athens Tuesday afternoon. Schools and universities 
across Greece were closed and hundreds of teachers, university lecturers 
and students rallied in central Athens. In the western part of the city, 
officials said groups of high-school students attacked four police 
stations but riot police did not respond and no injuries were reported.
Saturday's fatal shooting drove angry students to join with violent 
anarchist groups who have a long-standing animosity with police.
Commentator say the growing hostility by young Greeks toward authority 
is fed by public discontent over low wages, frequent public corruption 
scandals and a strong historic distrust of government rooted in past 
political upheavals.
The worst violence occurred late Monday when gangs of masked and hooded 
youths screaming "Cops! Pigs! Murderers!" set up burning barricades 
across Athens streets and fought pitched street battles with riot police 
firing volleys of tear gas.
There was more rioting across Greece, from Thessaloniki in the north to 
cities in Crete and the holiday island of Corfu. By early Tuesday, 
hundreds of stores, cars, banks and buildings in about a dozen cities 
had been torched, smashed or looted.
"Everyone has let our children down ... Every day I see that students 
are becoming more hostile toward us and figures of authority," said 
Christos Kittas, who resigned as the dean of Athens University after the 
rioting spread to campuses.
Riot police used tear gas and clashed with rioters but stood back as 
youths smashed windows and torched stores along Athens' main commercial 
streets. Athens police announced 89 arrests late Monday, while more than 
100 other people were detained for questioning. Twelve police officers 
were injured.
Greece's interior minister insisted police had successfully protected 
human life, and Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis said there would be no 
leniency for the rioters.
"No one has the right to use this tragic incident as an alibi for 
actions of raw violence, for actions against innocent people, their 
property and society as a whole, and against democracy," he said after 
an emergency meeting with the country's president, Karolos Papoulias.
Athens Mayor Nikitas Kaklamanis said 1,000 trash bins were set alight in 
the capital, most used as burning street barricades.
"These people respect nothing, look what they have destroyed," 
Kaklamanis said. "These people cannot be considered Greeks."
He said Christmas celebrations would take place as planned because he 
did not want to give the "worthless rioters" the satisfaction of seeing 
them canceled.
Authorities said more than 100 stores and banks were damaged or burned 
Monday in Thessaloniki.
Two police officers have been arrested and charged in the teen's murder, 
one with murder and the other as an accomplice.






http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/World-News/Greece-Athens-Braced-For-More-Violence-On-Day-Of-Shot-Teen-Alexandros-Grigoriadis-Funeral/Article/200812215175334?f=rss

Violence At Teenager's Funeral
10:53pm UK, Tuesday December 09, 2008
Greg Milam, Europe correspondent
Greece endured a fourth day of serious rioting triggered by the death of 
a teenage boy shot dead by police on Saturday.

Protesters throw stones at police outside parliament
A funeral for 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos was held in Athens, 
where thousands of mourners clashed with police at the cemetery.
Some 6,000 mourners attended the service for Alexandros, applauding as 
the teenager's body was carried out of church in a white coffin.
There were further violent protests outside the Greek Parliament.
Officers used tear gas to break up groups of stone-throwing youths, who 
attacked television crews, police and shops around the cemetery.
Youngsters leaving the funeral also set rubbish bins on fire in a nearby 
street.
Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis, whose party has a one-seat majority, 
held emergency talks with the president and opposition leaders to urge 
them to close ranks against the rioters.

The funeral for Alexandros
He described the protesters as enemies of the state and appealed to 
unions to cancel a protest rally during a 24-hour general strike 
scheduled for Wednesday.
But the opposition leader wants early elections and said the government 
could no longer defend the public from rioters.
"The government cannot handle this crisis and has lost the trust of the 
Greek people," George Papandreou said.
Violence also erupted in the port city of Patras, where the police 
headquarters came under siege.
About 500 people threw stones and Molotov cocktails. Police responded 
with tear gas.

Teenager shot by police
The funeral followed a protest outside the Greek parliament where 
hundreds of people threw stones and bottles at the building and the 
police officers who tried fend them off.
The protesters, including teachers and students, held their 
demonstration to demand justice for Grigoropoulos.
The death of the 15-year-old has sparked days of rioting across the 
country, with 87 arrests made on Monday night alone.
Police say they fired warning shots after being attacked by a crowd on 
the night Alexandros died. But witnesses claim an officer took 
deliberate aim at the boy.
Mobile phone footage, believed to show the moment the officer opened 
fire, has surfaced on the internet. The two officers involved have been 
arrested and charged.
"Riots never come out of nowhere, and especially not in Greece."
Anarchist groups who have led the rioting have been able to use 
university campuses to prepare and re-arm as, under Greek law, police 
are not allowed to enter.
Greece's second city Thessaloniki has also seen major unrest with 70 
stores and seven banks set on fire.
The riots have piled pressure on the Karamanlis government already 
feeling the heat from economic troubles and a corruption scandal.





http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/7772645.stm

Tuesday, 9 December 2008

Protests as Athens funeral held
Protesters and police clashed in the streets
Violence continued for a fourth day in Athens, as a funeral was held for 
a teenager whose death has sparked rioting across Greece.
Clashes erupted near the cemetery where 15-year-old Alexandros 
Grigoropoulos, shot by police on Saturday, was buried.
Youths also fought police outside parliament, in a repeat of the 
violence that has seen hundreds of buildings torched and dozens injured.
The opposition said the government had lost public support and should 
resign.
On Wednesday union leaders plan to hold a 24-hour general strike over 
welfare reforms. Police fear the stoppage, which is expected to bring 
the country to a standstill, could fuel further violence.
Funeral clashes
Fresh protests began in central Athens early on Tuesday. Schools were 
shut as thousands of teachers, schoolchildren and parents marched on 
parliament to protest against the killing.
See where unrest has spread
The situation escalated as hundreds of young people joined the protest, 
throwing stones and bottles at lines of riot police, who responded with 
tear gas.
Police used tear gas to disperse stone-throwing protesters
In the afternoon thousands of mourners gathered for the teenager's 
funeral in a coastal suburb further south.
The ceremony was calm, but violence then erupted outside the cemetery. 
Police used tear gas against groups of youths who threw stones and set 
rubbish bins ablaze.
By late evening, 15,000 police were deployed in the capital to maintain 
control, Reuters news agency said.
There was more fighting elsewhere in the country too.
In Thessaloniki, police clashed with groups of young people following a 
protest march earlier in the day. In Patras, a western port, rioters 
armed with petrol bombs and stones attacked the main police station.
Two police officers have been charged in connection with Alexandros 
Grigoropoulos's death, but results of a post-mortem to determine the 
trajectory of the bullet that killed him are not yet known.
The officer who fired says it was a ricochet from a warning shot but 
witnesses told Greek TV he fired directly at the teenager.
Lost confidence
In Athens, Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis held talks with President 
Karolos Papoulias and opposition leaders to discuss what action to take.
Mr Karamanlis, whose conservative party has a parliamentary majority of 
just one seat, called for unity and said rioters would not be shown any 
leniency.
"No one has the right to use this tragic incident as an excuse for acts 
of violence," he said.
But socialist leader George Papandreou said Greeks had lost confidence 
in the government.
"The only thing this government can offer is to resign and turn to the 
people for its verdict," he said.
'Rage'
Scores of arrests have been made since Saturday. Protesters wielding 
petrol bombs have set fire to banks, shops, hotels, vehicles and even 
the giant Christmas tree in Athens' central Syntagma Square.
Violent clashes have been reported in towns and cities across the country.
HAVE YOUR SAY
The army must take over now to stop these riots
Koufos, Thessaloniki, Greece
Send us your comments
Appeals for calm have so far been largely ignored. Police appear to be 
powerless to prevent rioters from attacking symbols of wealth and 
prestige in Athens, the BBC's Malcolm Brabant reports.
"Rage is what I feel for what has happened, rage," said one protesting 
student. "This cop who did it must see what it is to kill a kid and to 
destroy a life."
Mr Karamanlis has blamed "extreme elements" for taking advantage of the 
situation to engage in vandalism and pledged to compensate damaged 
businesses.
Observers say a state of emergency may be imposed, giving the 
authorities special powers to clear the streets.
But there is no question of calling in troops, our correspondent says: 
Greece has bitter memories of military rule so seeing troops on streets 
would be beyond the pale.






http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2008/1209/breaking1.htm

Tuesday, December 9, 2008, 19:18
Riots rock Greece as opposition calls for election
Riot police fought running battles with hundreds of protesters outside 
Greece's parliament today while the opposition socialist party called 
for elections to end four days of protests.
Rows of riot police squared off with demonstrators for more than an hour 
outside parliament before firing teargas to disperse the crowd.
Bands of young protesters regrouped to throw stones at police and 
chanted: "Let parliament burn!"
Violence spread to the Athens suburbs after the funeral of a 15-year-old 
boy, Alexandros Grigoropolos, whose shooting by police on Saturday 
triggered Greece's worst riots in decades, fanned by discontent at 
government scandals and a slowing economy.
More than 5,000 people dressed in black gathered at the cemetery, many 
chanting: "Cops, Pigs, Murderers".
As the boy's flower-covered white coffin was being buried, protesters 
clashed with police outside and one officer fired shots in the air to 
disperse an angry crowd.
His killing touched a raw nerve among young Greeks, outraged at years of 
political scandals and rising levels of poverty and unemployment, 
worsened by the global economic downturn.
Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis, whose party has a one seat majority, 
held emergency talks with the president and opposition leaders to urge 
them to close ranks against the rioters.
"We must all have a united stand against illegal actions, to clearly 
condemn violence, looting and vandalism," he said, and appealed to 
unions to cancel a protest rally during a 24-hour strike scheduled for 
tomorrow.
Police fear the strike, expected to ground flights and bring Greece to a 
standstill, will fuel more violence.
Both requests were quickly rejected by leftist union leaders and 
politicians who say the government's reforms have worsened conditions 
for the one-fifth of Greeks below the poverty line.
Protests have swept more than 10 cities across the European Union member 
state of 11 million people, including the tourist islands of Crete and 
Corfu.
Hundreds of buildings have been wrecked or burned and more than 50 
people injured. Police decline to give damage figures, but conservative 
estimates put it at millions of euros.
More than 130 shops have been destroyed in the capital, dashing 
retailers' hopes that Christmas would compensate for Greece's darkening 
economic outlook.
One policeman has been charged with murder over Grigoropoulos' shooting. 
Police said the officer fired three warning shots after their car was 
attacked by 30 youths on Saturday but witnesses said he took aim.
Police have arrested some 200 people, some for looting, during the 
protests but have tried to avoid direct fighting which might worsen 
tensions, police officials say.
Greece has a tradition of violence at student rallies and fire bomb 
attacks by anarchist groups, which have heightened tensions with police.






http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/12/10/2442065.htm

Print Email Share Add to My Stories
Athens rocked by new protests as schoolboy buried
Posted Wed Dec 10, 2008 1:00am AEDT

Police who have surrounded the building fired more tear gas in a bid to 
end the protests.
Police and protesters clashed for the fourth day in Athens as the Greek 
opposition called on the government to resign over nationwide riots 
sparked by the police killing of a 15-year-old boy.
New unrest has erupted in the Greek capital and other cities as hundreds 
of people attended the funeral of schoolboy Alexis Grigoropoulos in an 
Athens suburb.
Following Prime Minister Kostas Karamanlis' vow to crack down on the 
unrest, riot police fought demonstrators outside parliament and in the 
northern city of Salonika firing tear gas and dragging away some 
protesters in a bid to clear the streets.
Demonstrators hurled petrol bombs and other missiles in a bid to breach 
a cordon around parliament and other official buildings in the two cities.
There was also a standoff at two universities in central Athens which 
have been occupied by students.
Police who have surrounded the building fired more tear gas in a bid to 
end the protests.
Police said they made 87 arrests during a third night of rampaging 
violence by youths who looted banks and stores.
Some protesters staged attacks with swords and slingshots stolen from a 
weapons shop, they said.
Twelve more police were injured in Monday's clashes and at least 10 
people were hospitalised with respiratory problems from clouds of tear 
gas that blanketed central Athens.
Burnt out rubbish bins, glass and paving slabs torn off sidewalks 
littered the streets and emergency services said fires were put out at 
49 office buildings, 47 shops, 14 banks, 20 cars and three ministries.
Funeral
Hundreds of people, including many students, attended the funeral of 
Grigoropoulos in the seaside suburb of Palio Faliro.
Some youths shouted anti-police slogans at the cemetery but most people 
respected the family's request for a solemn service.
Grigoropoulos was allegedly among a group of youths that had thrown 
stones at a squad car in a district of Athens that is known as a radical 
stronghold.
The policeman who fired the shots and his partner have been arrested.
With the crisis increasingly turning into a political confrontation, 
thousands of students, teachers and left wing radicals joined Tuesday's 
rallies against the police action and the right wing government.
Around 2,000 protesters, led by the OLME teachers' union, marched on 
parliament carrying a large banner reading "Assassins, the government is 
the culprit".
And with a general strike looming today, socialist opposition leader 
George Papandreou called on the government to resign and seek a "public 
verdict" on the crisis.
"The government has lost public confidence," Mr Papandreou told Pasok 
socialist party deputies.
"The only thing it can give this country is to depart... to seek a 
public verdict so that the people can give a solution."
Mr Karamanlis called a crisis cabinet meeting on Monday night and held 
new meetings with President Karolos Papoulias and leaders of allied and 
opposition political parties on Tuesday.
"We will tolerate no leniency in the attribution of responsibility," the 
prime minister said after talks with the president.
"In these critical hours, the political world must unanimously condemn 
and isolate the perpetrators of this violence," Mr Karamanlis said.
The president appealed for calm, calling on Greeks to "honour Alexis' 
memory peacefully."
"This is a day of mourning for us all... but there must be respect for 
institutions and laws," Papoulias said in a statement.
- AFP





http://www.news24.com/News24/World/News/0,,2-10-1462_2439655,00.html

Greek cops break up protests
09/12/2008 16:14 - (SA)

Athens - Greek security forces on Tuesday broke up demonstrations by 
thousands of people in Athens and Salonika over the fatal shooting of a 
schoolboy by police.
In Athens, riot police used tear gas and formed a blockade of shields to 
keep demonstrators away from the parliament building. Demonstrators 
hurled petrol bombs and other missiles.
The protesters withdrew from the Syntagma square outside parliament to a 
main avenue in central Athens where there was a stand-off with police.
Thousands had joined a march on parliament behind a large banner 
reading: "Assassins, the government is the culprit".
Security forces also used tear gas to breakup about 2 000 students, 
teachers and left-wing radicals gathered outside a regional government 
office in Salonika, Greece's second largest city.
Greece has seen its worst unrest in decades since the fatal shooting of 
15-year-old Alexis Grigoropoulos, whose funeral was to be held on Tuesday.
About 2 000 protesters are marching on the Greek parliament in Athens, 
headed by the syndicate of secondary school teachers (OLME).
- AFP






http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/12/09/2442044.htm

Protesters clash with police in front of Greek parliament
Posted Tue Dec 9, 2008 10:39pm AEDT
Updated Tue Dec 9, 2008 11:57pm AEDT
Students and teacher protesters in Greece have clashed with police 
guarding the parliament in the capital Athens, in the latest riots over 
the police shooting of a teenager at the weekend.
The funeral of the 15-year-old boy is underway and there are fears it 
could spark more violence.
The incident caused three days of the worst riots the country has seen 
in decades.
Prime Minister Kostas Karamanlis has begun emergency talks with the 
opposition parties on how to restore calm.
He says it is important for the opposition and the government to present 
a united front.
"In these crucial times, the political world must unanimously and 
catagerorically condemn the agents of destruction and isolate them," he 
said.
"We are oblied by our duty as democracy. This is what our citizens 
demand. This is our debt to the nation."
But opposition leader George Papandreou says the only way to resolve the 
crisis is for the government to step down and call new elections.
Leonidas Zierock, a medical student in Athens, says some are using the 
death to express their anger at the government.
"There's lots of confusion at the moment," he said.
"People are protesting against what happened with the killing of the 
teenager er mixed with all kinds of different people that misuse the 
situation for just, you know, rioting and damaging things, just 
expressing their frustration with the general situation."
- BBC






http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200812/200812090002.html

Updated Dec.9,2008 07:52 KST

Riot Police Battle Protesters in Greek Capital

A vehicle burns outside the Athens University main building as riots 
went on for a third day, Dec. 8, 2008.

Riot police in Athens used tear gas Monday to repel rock-throwing 
protesters near the Greek Interior Ministry and parliament. The 
demonstrations were sparked by the fatal police shooting of an Athens 
teenager on Saturday.
The new fighting erupted as Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis vowed 
to end "dangerous" rioting that has spread across the country since the 
killing. Authorities describe the rioting as the worst to hit Greece in 
decades.
Mr. Karamanlis, speaking on national television, said the rioting will 
not be tolerated. He said the government "will protect society."
Hundreds of protesters also clashed with police in the northern city of 
Salonika. And at least one police officer was injured in Trikala.
Protesters in London scuffled with police outside the Greek embassy, 
tearing down the Greek flag and raising an anarchist banner. Separately, 
15 protesters occupied the Greek consulate in Berlin for a number of 
hours before leaving peacefully.
Authorities in Athens are bracing for wider protests Wednesday as labor 
groups plan a 24-hour general strike against government economic policies.
The violence began Saturday in the Greek capital after police gunfire 
killed a teenager. The two police officers involved have been arrested 
and charged -- one with premeditated murder and the other as an accomplice.
The officers said their patrol car came under attack and that they 
responded with warning shots. However, witnesses said one of the 
officers aimed his weapon at the 15-year-old boy, and fired.
Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.
VOA News






http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=684062&rss=yes

Athens rocked by new protests
23:17 AEST Tue Dec 9 2008
118 days 11 hours 34 minutes ago
By Philippe Perdriau
VIEWS: 0
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Rioting in Greece has continued into a third day following the shooting 
of a teenager by police.

Police and students clashed outside the Greek parliament Tuesday despite 
an appeal for calm by the president ahead of the funeral for a 
15-year-old boy whose killing by police set off nationwide riots.
The troubles entered a fourth day as Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis 
appealed for national unity to end the violence and the family of 
15-year-old Alexis Grigoropoulos prepared to hold his funeral.
Authorities closed off many Athens streets after a third night of 
rampaging violence by youths who looted banks and stores. Police, who 
made 87 arrests, said some protesters staged attacks with swords and 
slingshots stolen from a weapons shop.
Twelve more police were injured in Monday's clashes and at least 10 
people were hospitalised with respiratory problems from clouds of tear 
gas that blanketed central Athens.
The latest unrest on Tuesday flared outside the parliament where a 
molotov cocktail was thrown at riot police during a protest by students.
Earlier tear gas battles had been staged at the Athens Polytechnic which 
along with the nearby Athens Law School has been occupied by students 
protesting at the killing.
Streets around the universities were closed. Both colleges are in the 
Exarchia district where Grigoropoulos was fatally shot by police on 
Saturday, setting off the worst unrest to hit Greece in decades.
Thousands of teachers and students took to the streets of the capital to 
demand justice.
Around 2,000 protesters, led by the OLME teachers' union, marched on the 
Greek parliament carrying a large banner reading "Assassins, the 
government is the culprit".
Burnt out rubbish bins, glass and paving slabs torn off sidewalks 
littered the streets from the third night of troubles on Monday when 
emergency services said fires were put out at 49 office buildings, 47 
shops, 14 banks, 20 cars and three ministries.
The northern city of Salonika also saw major unrest. At least 70 stores 
and seven banks were set ablaze, according to the ANA news agency. 
Several thousand students staged a protest march there on Tuesday.
The funeral of Grigoropoulos was to be held at the southern Athens 
suburb of Palio Faliro at 1300 GMT (2400 AEDT).
He was allegedly among a group of youths that had thrown stones at a 
squad car in a district of Athens that is known as a radical stronghold. 
The policeman who fired the shots and his partner have been arrested.
Universities and schools have been closed, students planned their own 
protest rally on Tuesday and unions have said that a general strike, 
which was called before the killing, will go ahead.
The mass unrest has piled pressure on the conservative prime minister 
who vowed on Monday to end the troubles.
Karamanlis called a crisis cabinet meeting on Monday night and held new 
meetings with President Karolos Papoulias and leaders of allied and 
opposition political parties on Tuesday.
"We will tolerate no leniency in the attribution of responsibility," the 
prime minister said after talks with the president.
"In these critical hours, the political world must unanimously condemn 
and isolate the perpetrators of this violence," Karamanlis said.
The president appealed for calm, calling on Greeks to "honour Alexis' 
memory peacefully."
"This is a day of mourning for us all ... but there must be respect for 
institutions and laws," Papoulias said in a statement.
But the government, already in trouble over the state of the economy and 
a series of political scandals, has been strongly criticised over the havoc.
"The whole country was delivered to chaos by an irresponsible 
government," the Eleftherotypia daily said in an editorial Tuesday. The 
top-selling Ta Nea added: "The police were absent from nearly all 
locations where vandalism occurred."
The violence has showcased the organisational capacity of urban radicals 
and the failure of the government to crack down on them, critics said.
Criminologist Ioannis Panoussis said: "There is a well-functioning 
mechanism in place," with the Internet and mobile telephones speeding up 
the troublemakers' capacity to react, Panoussis said.
"Because this time it connected with the spontaneous anger of the 
youths, the scale of the incidents vastly expanded," he added.
Social and economic factors also shape the anarchist movement, according 
to lawyer Dimitris Beladis, who specialises in urban troubles.
"It is the detonator of a sort of social explosion due to economic 
insecurity that affects many youths and those who are unemployed or 
badly paid," Beladis said.






Monday DECEMBER 8

http://www.voanews.com/english/archive/2008-12/2008-12-08-voa33.cfm?CFID=160209243&CFTOKEN=46210109&jsessionid=8830ee4177ef11a04ee937295775582c6b56

Riot Police Battle Protesters in Greek Capital
By VOA News
08 December 2008

A vehicle burns outside the Athens University main building as riots 
went on for a third day, 08 Dec 2008
Riot police in Athens used tear gas Monday to repel rock-throwing 
protesters near the Greek Interior Ministry and parliament. The 
demonstrations were sparked by the fatal police shooting of an Athens 
teenager on Saturday.

The new fighting erupted as Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis vowed 
to end "dangerous" rioting that has spread across the country since the 
killing. Authorities describe the rioting as the worst to hit Greece in 
decades.

Mr. Karamanlis, speaking on national television, said the rioting will 
not be tolerated. He said the government "will protect society."

Hundreds of protesters also clashed with police in the northern city of 
Salonika. And at least one police officer was injured in Trikala.

Protesters in London scuffled with police outside the Greek embassy, 
tearing down the Greek flag and raising an anarchist banner. Separately, 
15 protesters occupied the Greek consulate in Berlin for a number of 
hours before leaving peacefully.

Authorities in Athens are bracing for wider protests Wednesday as labor 
groups plan a 24-hour general strike against government economic policies.

The violence began Saturday in the Greek capital after police gunfire 
killed a teenager. The two police officers involved have been arrested 
and charged - one with premeditated murder and the other as an accomplice.

The officers said their patrol car came under attack and that they 
responded with warning shots. However, witnesses said one of the 
officers aimed his weapon at the 15-year-old boy, and fired.





http://www.news24.com/News24/World/News/0,,2-10-1462_2439177,00.html
Riot police tear gas protesters
08/12/2008 18:23 - (SA)
Athens - Greek riot police on Monday fired tear gas and staged a baton 
charge to break up hundreds of youth demonstrators in central Athens in 
the latest day of troubles sparked by the shooting death of a 15-year 
boy, an AFP reporter said.
Armed with stone shards broken from sidewalks on nearby Syntagma Square, 
around 300 youths attacked riot police stationed in front of the 
Parliament who responded with heavy discharges of tear gas.
The clashes occurred ahead of a demonstration called by leftists and 
unions to protest against the killing of 15-year-old pupil Alexis 
Grigoropoulos on Saturday.
- AFP







http://www.boston.com/news/world/europe/articles/2008/12/09/greek_youths_riot_to_protest_killing/?rss_id=Boston.com+--+World+news

Greek youths riot to protest killing
3d day of clashes since shooting of teen by police
By Anthee Carassava
New York Times / December 9, 2008
ATHENS - Violence by youths angry over the killing of a teenager by the 
police raged across Greece for a third day yesterday as thousands of 
police officers failed to contain some of the worst rioting in recent years.
A march through downtown Athens turned violent, as protesters threw 
concrete slabs, rocks, and flaming gasoline bombs at the officers and 
smashed storefronts. A government Christmas tree along their path was 
set on fire. Rioting also intensified in the country's second largest 
city, Salonika, and spread to Trikala, a city in the agricultural heartland.
Schools were shut in Athens, the capital, and high school and university 
students spilled onto the streets, leading to scattered violence 
throughout the day. But the evening demonstration, which had attracted 
thousands and was organized by the Communist Party, was accompanied by 
some of the worst of the violence of the past several days.
A strip of five-star hotels was ransacked, including the Grande 
Bretagne, where a life-size scene of "The Nutcracker" was knocked down, 
and the Athens Plaza, where a guard said guests had to be evacuated.
The rioting began Saturday, shortly after a 15-year-old was fatally shot 
in what the police said was a confrontation with a mob. The government 
has charged one police officer with premeditated manslaughter in the 
case and another as an accomplice.
Senior security officials said they had put the country's 45,000-member 
police force on alert in one of the biggest security mobilizations since 
Athens was host to the 2004 Summer Olympics. Panayiotis Stathis, a 
spokesman for the Athens police, said security forces were "trying to 
control the situation" while using restraint in putting down any protests.
As night fell yesterday, rioters were barricaded at two university 
campuses in the capital. The Greek police and military have not been 
permitted to enter college campuses since 1973, when tanks quashed a 
student uprising at Athens Polytechnic, leading to at least 22 civilian 
deaths.
Panagiotis Sotiris, 38, a spokesman for Uniting Anti-Capitalist Left, a 
coalition of leftist groups that helped take over the Athens Law School 
yesterday, told Reuters that the violence was connected not only to the 
killing, "but is a struggle to overthrow the government's policy."
"We are experiencing moments of a great social revolution," he said.
In Athens, some 15,000 police officers fanned out across the city, the 
authorities said. Rebel youths and anarchists threw rocks at officers in 
riot gear and shouted anti-establishment slogans as the police countered 
with rounds of tear gas.
Workers who returned to their jobs yesterday expressed anger at the 
damage, which has destroyed department stores, banks and scores of cars.
"What happened with the teenager was terrible," said Marina 
Christodoulou, a teller at a bank destroyed by rioters. "But watching 
these rebellious youths tear down the town without an inkling of a 
response from the police makes the authorities look like cowards."
Clashes between the police and anarchists and other radical youth in 
Greece are common, but the rioting represented the worst such violence 
in years.






http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/world/2008/1209/1228571686307.html

Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Rioters clash with police across Greece in third night of protests
Athens's giant Christmas tree burns in front of the Greek parliament 
last night. Photographs: Reuters, AP
• « Prev 1/2 Next »
In this section »
• Five 9/11 suspects want to plead guilty at trial
• Stopgap nature of Poznan underlined
ATHENS - Thousands of protesters rampaged through the heart of Athens 
yesterday, burning and looting shops on a third day of riots sparked by 
the killing of a teenager by police.
Tear gas filled Syntagma Square outside Greece's parliament as police 
clashed with left-wing demonstrators, beating some with batons and 
detaining others.
Anger over the 15-year-old boy's killing has fed into resentment over 
economic hardships and could topple an unpopular conservative government.
"We are experiencing moments of a great social revolution," said leftist 
activist Panagiotis Sotiris (38), among those occupying a university 
building. "The protests will last as long as necessary."
Protests were reported in more than 10 cities across the nation of 11 
million people, including the northern city of Thessaloniki and the 
tourist islands of Crete and Corfu.
Youths appeared to be in control of central Athens, plundering and 
setting fire to shops, destroying banks and attacking ministries. The 
city's huge Christmas tree went up in flames.
"We are not counting any more . . . The incidents cannot be counted," 
said a fire brigade officer.
Firemen extinguished a fire at one department store but the headquarters 
of Olympic Airways were still burning and all the city's fire engines 
were on the streets, he said.
More than 130 shops have already been destroyed in the capital, crushing 
retailers' hopes that Christmas would compensate for Greece's darkening 
economic outlook. Police have detained more than 35 people and more than 
50 were injured.
With a 24-hour general strike due tomorrow against economic reforms, 
analysts said Greece's worst riots in decades looked set to continue and 
could threaten the conservative government, which has a one-seat 
parliamentary majority.
"Enough with this government, which doesn't understand the problems of 
this country," said George Papandreou, leader of the socialist PASOK 
opposition party.
The socialists already held a strong lead in opinion polls before the 
riots, riding a wave of discontent at the ruling New Democracy Party's 
privatisations and pension reforms. Political analysts say an early 
election could be called next year.
Prime minister Costas Karamanlis expressed sorrow for the family of the 
dead boy but warned demonstrators to stop. The government would try to 
compensate property owners, he said.
"We will not tolerate unacceptable and dangerous events prompted by the 
tragic incident," he said yesterday, in his first public appearance 
since the riots began.
As night fell on the Greek capital, thousands marched arm-in-arm through 
the city's main streets. Anarchists smashed car windows and chanted 
"Cops, Pigs, Murderers". Some threw fire bombs at police and, for a 
third night, businesses burned and explosions rang out.
The shooting of 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos by a policeman on 
Saturday kindled smouldering anger among Greek youths, resentful at a 
widening gap between rich and poor made worse by the global credit crisis.
Violence at student rallies and fire bomb attacks by anarchists are 
common, especially in Athens's Exarchia district where the boy was shot. 
But anger at the killing has even reached Greeks overseas, who protested 
in London and Berlin.
In Athens, more than a dozen police stations were damaged by 
demonstrators, who also raided a small pro-government newspaper and 
broke into a weapons shop, emerging with ninja swords and knives. 
Millions of euros of property was damaged.
Thessaloniki also saw street battles between police and hundreds of 
protesters, who smashed shops and threw rocks at government offices. 
Clashes took place in Crete and Corfu as well as the cities of Volos, 
Komotini and Chania.
Two police officers have been charged over the shooting - one with 
murder and the other as an accomplice. A police statement said one 
officer fired three shots after their car was attacked by 30 youths in 
Exarchia. A police official said the officer had described firing 
warning shots, but witnesses told TV he took aim at the boy. A coroner's 
report said it was not possible to be sure. - (Reuters)





http://news.scotsman.com/world/Havoc-in-cities-across-Greece.4773233.jp

Havoc in cities across Greece as protesters talk of 'social revolution'

Published Date: 09 December 2008
By Daniel Flynn and Dina Kyriakidou
THOUSANDS of protesters rampaged through the heart of Athens yesterday, 
burning and looting shops on a third day of riots sparked by the killing 
of a teenager by police.

Tear gas filled Syntagma Square outside Greece's parliament as police 
clashed with left-wing demonstrators, beating some with batons and 
detaining others.

Anger over the 15-year-old boy's killing has turned to resentment over 
economic hardships and could topple the unpopular conservative government.

"We are experiencing moments of a great social revolution," said 
Panagiotis Sotiris, 38, an activist among those occupying a university 
building.

"The protests will last as long as necessary."

Protests were reported in more than ten cities across the nation of 11 
million people, including the northern city of Thessaloniki, and on the 
tourist islands of Crete and Corfu.

Youths appeared to be in control of central Athens, plundering and 
setting fire to shops, destroying banks and attacking ministries. The 
city's huge Christmas tree went up in flames.

"We are not counting any more. The incidents cannot be counted," a fire 
brigade officer said last night.

Firefighters extinguished a fire at one department store but the 
headquarters of Olympic Airways were still burning and all the city's 
fire engines were on the streets, he said.

More than 130 shops have been destroyed in the capital, crushing 
retailers' hopes that Christmas would compensate for Greece's darkening 
economic outlook. Police have detained more than 35 people and more than 
50 are injured.

With a 24-hour general strike due tomorrow, in protest against economic 
reforms, analysts said Greece's worst riots in decades looked set to 
continue and could threaten the government, which has a one-seat 
parliamentary majority.

The socialists already held a strong lead in opinion polls before the 
riots, riding a wave of discontent at the ruling New Democracy Party's 
privatisations and pension reforms. Political analysts say an early 
election could be called next year.

Costas Karamanlis, the prime minister, expressed sorrow for the family 
of the dead boy, but warned demonstrators to stop.

The government would try to compensate property owners, he said.

As night fell on the Greek capital, thousands marched arm-in-arm through 
its main streets. Anarchists smashed car windows and chanted "cops, 
pigs, murderers". Some threw firebombs at police as businesses burned.

The shooting of Alexandros Grigoropoulos by a policeman on Saturday has 
kindled smouldering anger among Greek youths, resentful at a widening 
gap between rich and poor made worse by the global credit crisis.

Violence at student rallies and firebomb attacks by anarchists are 
common, especially in Athens' Exarchia district where the boy was shot. 
But anger at the boy's killing has even reached Greeks overseas, who 
protested in London and Berlin.

Five men were arrested in London yesterday for public order offences 
after they took part in a 40-strong protest outside the Greek embassy in 
Holland Park.

Two police officers have been charged over the shooting – one with 
murder and the other as an accomplice. A police statement said one 
officer fired three shots after their car was attacked by 30 youths in 
Exarchia.






http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/europe/july-dec08/greekriots_12-08.html

Two Police Officers Charged as Riots Rage in Greece
Youth riots across Greece continued for the third day Monday as two 
policemen were charged in the killing of a young man Saturday night in 
Athens.
Major protests in Athens and Thessaloniki, Greece's second-largest city, 
had riot police armed with tear gas clashing with thousands of 
demonstrators into Monday.
Two police officers have been charged in the death of 15-year-old 
Alexandros Grigoropoulos, one with murder and another with being an 
accomplice, according to Reuters and the Associated Press.
Grigoropoulos was shot and killed Saturday night when about 30 youths 
became embroiled in a fight with police in the volatile Athens district 
of Exarchia. Police accounts say Grigoropoulos was about to throw a 
fuel-filled device at them, CNN reported. Other witnesses say the firing 
was unwarranted.
The circumstances surrounding the teenager's death Saturday are unclear, 
but the two officers involved have been arrested. A coroner's report 
shows the boy was shot in the chest. Schools were to shut on Tuesday in 
mourning, while staff at universities declared a three-day strike.
Mobs of young activists, outraged at Grigoropoulos's death, stormed the 
Interior Ministry and Parliament in Athens and organized larger protests 
across the country, building mobility through the Internet and via text 
messages, the New York Times reported. Protesters threw fire bombs and 
stones at riot police. Major protests Monday were organized across 
Athens, Thessaloniki, Larissa and the island of Corfu.
The Greek embassies in Berlin and London were also attacked. In Berlin, 
about 15 protesters submitted a letter of protest about the young man's 
death and raised a banner saying Grigoropoulos was "murdered by the state."
In Athens alone, about 130 businesses were damaged in the weekend riots, 
many on the popular Ermou pedestrian shopping street and extending to 
the Monastiraki district. Five stores, including a multi-story sports 
clothing store and a Ford car dealership, were gutted by fire. Many more 
were damaged on Monday.
"This was a show of strength by mindless people. ... At some point 
someone has to tell us who will pay for all this damage," Athens Traders 
Association head Panayis Karellas said, according to the AP.
The Police Officers' Association has apologized to the boy's family, and 
President Karolos Papoulias sent a telegram to his parents expressing 
his condolences.
Unrest in the country is being seen as symptomatic of a growing and 
volatile distrust of government among Greek youth, CNN reported.
Greek Prime Minister Kostas Karamanlis was reelected last year and 
promised to prioritize social and economic reform, but the government's 
popularity has since fallen "amid allegations of cronyism and 
corruption," according to CNN.
At least six Athens protesters were arrested Sunday under the accusation 
of looting a vandalized department store. The New York Times reported 
that "dozens of officers had been injured while trying to seal off 
streets around Athens Polytechnic University" in Exarchia.
"The protesters, hiding behind blazing trash bins and the university's 
gates, continued to pelt the police with stones and fire bombs," the 
Times reported. "It remained unclear whether the authorities would try 
to get permission to storm the state university."
Karamanlis Monday morning condemned the riots and accused protesters of 
exploiting "this tragedy for their own purposes," in a televised newscast.
"All the dangerous and unacceptable events that occurred because of the 
emotions that followed the tragic incident cannot and will not be 
tolerated," Karamanlis said.
In the past, youth-led riots against in Greece have disrupted government 
and escalated to violence. In 1985, a teenager was killed in a police 
shooting during a demonstration, which sparks protests that took 
officials weeks to quell. In 1999, Athens businesses were destroyed in 
rioting sparked by a visit by then-President Bill Clinton.





http://www.thenational.ae/article/20081208/FOREIGN/122563149/1002/rss

Greece riots enter third day
• Last Updated: December 08. 2008 2:58PM UAE / December 8. 2008 10:58AM GMT

Riot police avoid fire bombs thrown by protesters outside the The 
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki during clashes, on Dec 7 2008. 
Nikolas Giakoumidis / AP
ATHENS // Hundreds of students threw fire bombs at police in the 
northern Greek city of Thessaloniki today in a third day of riots after 
police shot dead a 15-year-old boy.

Dozens of people have been injured and scores of businesses destroyed in 
Athens and Thessaloniki during Greece’s worst rioting in decades, which 
has piled pressure on a conservative government already falling behind 
in opinion polls.

The streets of Thessaloniki filled with tear gas today as police chased 
about 300 left-wing protesters, detaining two youths. Two police 
officers have been charged over the shooting of Andreas Grigoropoulos on 
Saturday night in Athens – one with murder and the other as an 
accomplice. Despite their arrest, more trouble was expected later today 
in Athens, where the Greek Communist Party called a protest rally.

Cars and pedestrians returned to Athens streets today as Greeks went 
back to work, but the mood was tense. In the main shopping street, 
Ermou, a police team began to assess the damage.

“It is quiet now but I’ve never seen anything like it in my life,” said 
Yiorgos Ganatsikos, 52, a kiosk owner. “I hope they don’t continue. 
Otherwise, God help us.”

With a 24-hour general strike scheduled for Wednesday against pension 
reforms and the government’s economic policies, many Greeks fear the 
demonstrations could last for days.

The shooting angered Greek youths, already resentful about a widening 
gap between rich and poor. Violence at student rallies and firebomb 
attacks by anarchists are common, especially in Athens’ Exarchia 
district where the boy was shot.

“This comes at a very difficult moment for the government,” said Anthony 
Livanios of pollster Alpha Metrics. “If this continues, it could have a 
devastating effect on the government and on stability.”

University professors started a three-day walkout today and many school 
students stayed away from class in protest.

“He could have been our brother. He could have been our fellow student, 
he could have been one of us,” said Vangelis Spiratos, 13.

Ignoring government appeals for calm, leftist demonstrators and 
anarchists staged running battles with police following the teenager’s 
death on Saturday, which has shocked the nation.

A police statement said one officer fired three shots after their car 
was attacked by 30 youths in Exarchia. A police official said the 
officer had described firing warning shots, but witnesses said he took 
aim at Alexandros Grigoropoulos.

Violence spread across the country, as far as the northern city of 
Thessaloniki and the tourist islands of Crete and Corfu, leaving at 
least 34 injured. Police detained 20 in Athens.

On Sunday, protesters rained petrol bombs down on rows of Athens riot 
police, while helicopters hovered overhead and tear gas choked the city.

Scores of shops and more than a dozen banks were torched in the 
capital’s busiest commercial districts ahead of the busy Christmas 
period. The mayor of Athens has postponed the launch of holiday 
festivities.

* Reuters






Sunday DECEMBER 7




http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/greece/3676078/Greek-riots-Protesters-threaten-third-day-of-violence.html

Greek riots: Protesters threaten third day of violence
Greek demonstrators have vowed to carry out another wave of protests on 
Monday, two days after police shot dead a 15-year-old boy sparking riots 
that left one dead and dozens injured.

Last Updated: 1:05PM GMT 08 Dec 2008

Thousands of youths clashed with police and rampaged through Athens and 
other cities on weekend, burning scores of cars and shops in the worst 
protests to erupt in Greece in years.
Pressure on the conservative government showed no sign of easing. The 
Greek Communist Party called a mass rally in central Athens for Monday 
evening and the socialist PASOK opposition, which has risen to top spot 
in opinion polls recently, said Greeks must denounce the government.

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"We must answer the government's policies en masse and peacefully," the 
PASOK youth branch said in a statement..
Two Greek police officers were arrested on Sunday over the killing of 
the boy.
Thousands of protesters battled police in central Athens, smashing the 
windows of shops and banks with Molotov cocktails, and sending three 
officers to hospital, said police, who used tear gas to disperse the 
rioters.
Police said more than 34 people had been injured, including one woman 
with a serious head wound, while 20 were detained. Later reports said 
one person had been killed in the violence.
Youths threw petrol bombs, burned cars and smashed shop windows as 
unrest began on Saturday night after the shooting in the Athens Exarchia 
district, a regular scene of violent clashes between police and leftist 
groups.
Violence flared again in Athens on Sunday as two thousand protesters 
marched to on the capital's police headquarters.
Rioting spread to Greece's second largest city of Thessaloniki after 
protesters attacked government buildings, shops, police and the media.
Riots were also reported in the university towns and cities of Patras, 
Komotini, Heralkion Ioannina and Crete's Chania.
Nearly 5,000 people rallied outside the National Museum, near where the 
teenage victim, Andreas Grigoropoulos, died late Saturday.
Grigoropoulos was killed by shots fired from a police gun during clashes 
between police and youths in Athens' Exarchia district. He was among a 
group of youths who were accused of attacking a police car.
One of the two officers in the vehicle allegedly got out of the car and 
took out his gun, firing three bullets at the teen, who was fatally 
wounded in the chest.
A police official said the officer described his fire as warning shots 
but witnesses told Greek TV he took aim at the boy.
Two police officers were charged over the shooting - one with 
premeditated manslaughter and the other with abetting him.
The shooting touched a raw nerve among Greek youth, whose anger has been 
fanned by the growing gap between rich and poor in recent years. 
Violence at student rallies and fire bomb attacks by anarchist groups 
are common.
The demonstrations began on the streets of Athens late Saturday with 
protesters denouncing the "arbitrary" police action, shouting slogans 
against the Right-wing government of Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis.
Mr Karamanlis on Sunday expressed his sympathy in a letter to the 
parents of the dead teenager.
"In these difficult moments please accept my condolences for the unfair 
loss of your son," Mr Karamanlis wrote.
"Like all Greeks I am deeply saddened," he said. "I know that nothing 
can relieve your pain."
Mr Karamanlis also said that those responsible would be brought to 
justice and that "the state will see to it that such a tragedy does not 
happen again."







http://static.rnw.nl/migratie/www.radionetherlands.nl/currentaffairs/region/europe/081208-greece-riots-redirected

Tension in Greece after anarchist riots
RNW News
08-12-2008
Schools and universities in Greece are to remain closed for three days 
after violent riots by anarchists in Athens and other cities. The 
teachers' unions have called a strike in protest at pension reforms.
The rioting erupted after a fifteen-year old teenager was shot dead on 
Saturday afternoon in a confrontation with police. At least 40 people 
were injured; eyewitnesses say streets in Athens and Thessaloniki look 
like there has been a civil war, with burnt out car barricades and 
smashed shop windows. Police arrested 20 rioters.
After two days of rioting, the protests died down in the early hours of 
Monday morning. But Greece's Communist Party called for another day of 
anti-government protests on Monday.
The opposition socialist PASOK party has called for peaceful mass 
demonstrations against the right-wing government's policies.
Policeman charged
The policeman who shot the teenager says he fired three warning shots, 
one of which must have hit the boy by accident. The boy was among a 
group of 30 youths who were allegedly attacking the policeman and a 
colleague. The police officer has been charged with murder. Interior 
Minister Prokopis Pavlopoulos has agreed to an investigation of the case 
and has warned that those responsible for the shoorting will be punished.
Violent tradition
Greece has a long tradition of violent anarchist protest, usually 
directed against right-wing governments and the military. The anarchists 
often target 'capitalist' institutions like banks, shopping centres and 
car dealers, and people seen as establishment figureheads, such as 
policemen and journalists. The anarchist movement developed under the 
military junta that ruled Greece from 1967 to 1974.
In addition to the anarchist tradition, Greece has also seen a string of 
controversial educational reforms which has eroded the universities' 
confidence in the government. Frequent student strikes are often 
supported by the universities.






http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/world/2008/1208/1228571631674.html

Monday, December 8, 2008
Second night of riots in Greece after police kill boy
Protesters throw stones at riot policemen behind burning barricades 
during riots in Athens yesterday. Hundreds of demonstrators clashed with 
riot police in Athens and the northern city of Thessaloniki in a second 
day of protests over the shooting dead by police of a 15-year-old boy. 
Photograph: John Kolesidis/Reuters
In this section »
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HELENA SMITH in Athens
THOUSANDS OF youths armed with stones, batons and fire bombs engaged in 
running battles with riot police, destroying shops, banks and cars in 
cities across Greece last night in a second night of rioting.
The violence, the country's worst civil disturbances in years, erupted 
late on Saturday when it emerged that a teenage boy had been killed by 
police in Exarchia, a part of central Athens associated with lawlessness 
and drug abuse.
Within hours, the protests had spread to Greece's northern capital, 
Thessaloniki, its western port city of Patras and Chania on Crete, as 
protesters giving vent to a disaffection exacerbated by the economic 
crisis went on the rampage.
By last night, several areas, including the commercial strip in Athens 
and streets around its Polytechnic resembled a battle zone, with glass, 
rubble and broken mannequins on the sidewalks.
As plumes of smoke filled the capital's skyline, and shopkeepers rushed 
to clear up the debris, officials reported that more than 30 people had 
been injured, including police officers, firefighters and a number of 
passers-by caught up in the chaos. Looting was also rife.
Local TV stations showed stone-throwing youths erecting barricades in 
Athens as police responded with tear gas.
The rioters in turn sought sanctuary in the grounds of the Polytechnic 
and Athens University, which traditionally have been off-limits to 
security forces since the collapse of military rule in 1974.
The chaos deepened yesterday in Athens and Thessaloniki as protesters 
marched through streets shouting anti-government slogans. "Down with the 
murderers in uniform," they shouted at the police.
"I've never seen anything like this," said Kostas Koskliouris (42), 
standing outside the Italian-owned Benetton clothing store where he 
works. "So much of Athens is destroyed, and it all happened in just a 
couple of hours." The scale of the protests appeared to catch Greece's 
embattled centre-right government off guard.
Angered and embarrassed at the killing of the teenager - named as 
Alexandros Grigoropoulos, the son of a bank manager and a student at a 
school in Athens - the interior minister, Prokopis Pavlopoulos, tendered 
his resignation, promising that "exemplary punishment" would be taken 
against the police officers involved.
Two officers were arrested in relation to the shooting and prosecutors 
said one would be charged with wilful killing and the other with 
abetting him. A police statement said an officer fired three shots after 
his car was attacked by 30 youths in Exarchia. An official said the 
officer described his gunfire as warning shots, but witnesses told Greek 
television he aimed at the boy.
The prime minister, Costas Karamanlis, publicly apologised to the dead 
boy's father: "I know nothing can relieve your pain, but I assure you . 
. . the state will act, as it ought to, so that yesterday's tragedy 
won't be repeated."
There was little sign last night that pleas for calm were being heeded. 
"Greek society has been besieged by a feeling of hopelessness, many 
don't believe in anything," said Stelios Bahis (44), a former merchant 
marine engineer who works as a museum guard. "It was great that the 
politicians we have today helped get rid of the junta in 1974. But ever 
since, they've just created their own cliques of power and sidelined 
those who are not with them. People have had enough of the scandals, the 
corruption and especially the police, who we all know are not clean."
There is growing anger in the country at the widening gap between rich 
and poor. Statistics released earlier this year showed that one in five 
Greeks lives beneath the poverty line.
Karamanlis's market-oriented government, which is into its second term, 
has been hit by accusations of sleaze in recent months. Joblessness 
among the younger generation, especially those aged 20 to 25, is high, 
with many barely surviving on €500 a month.
"There are a lot of disoriented young people who feel they don't have 
much to expect from the future and are very disconnected," said Prof 
Thanos Dokos, an analyst at a Greek think-tank. - (Guardian service)






http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/1208/p06s02-wogn.html

Anarchists' fury fuels Greek riots
An uneasy truce between anarchists and police was shattered following a 
weekend shooting of a teen. A similar event in 1985 sparked months of 
daily clashes.
By Nicole Itano | Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor
from the December 8, 2008 edition

Reporter Nicole Itano discusses confusion and anger in Greece following 
the shooting death of a boy and the violent riots that followed.
ATHENS - Greece's worst rioting in years erupted late Saturday night 
after an Athens policeman shot and killed a teenage boy in a central 
neighborhood known as the base of anarchist and other antiestablishment 
groups.
By Sunday morning, with the riots continuing, a trail of devastation had 
been blazed across central Athens – with the stench of tear gas and 
smoke from charred vehicles and buildings hanging over parts of the 
ancient city. The violence quickly spread to other parts of the country, 
including Greece's second-city, Thessaloniki, and the vacation islands 
of Crete and Corfu.
The shooting and its violent aftermath threatens to escalate a 
decades-long conflict that has simmered between police and far-left 
groups. The conservative government, which was already struggling to 
stay in power in the wake of a recent land-exchange scandal, attempted 
to calm the rioters by arresting the two police officers connected with 
the shooting.
The fatal shooting took place in the Athens neighborhood of Exarchia, a 
dense warren of concrete apartment buildings home to a mix of students 
and anarchists. Clashes between police and radicals are common in the 
neighborhood.
Anarchist groups frequently set off small bombs throughout the city – on 
Wednesday alone a bomb damaged the offices of the French news service 
Agence France Presse and arsonists torched a Bosnian embassy car and a 
bank cash machine.
Brady Kiesling, a former US diplomat, who is writing a book about the 
Greek militant group November 17, says Greek police have limited power 
to use force against these groups because public sentiment will not 
tolerate it. This has resulted in a delicate balance in Exarchia, with 
neither pushing the other too far. Many Greeks cite the events of 
November 17, 1973 – a day that is still commemorated, when the army 
stormed the Athens Polytechnic University and killed a number of 
striking students – as a reason why the police must be restricted.
"The police stay out of certain areas, unless there's a major emergency, 
and the anarchists don't trash things badly unless there's a good 
reason," Mr. Kiesling says. But "once someone gets killed, the doctrine 
is massive retaliation."
Details of the shooting are disputed, but police issued a statement 
saying the two officers had been attacked by a group of youths. One 
officer threw a stun grenade while the other responded with three shots. 
At least one bullet hit the boy, reported to be 15 or 16. According to 
police, he died on the way to the hospital.
The last fatal police shooting of a minor in Greece, in 1985, sparked 
months of nearly daily clashes between police and anarchists. The 
terrorist group November 17 also bombed a bus full of riot police in 
retaliation, Kiesling says.
Both officers involved in Saturday's incident have been arrested. 
Prokopis Pavlopoulos, the country's Interior minister, who is 
responsible for the police, promised punishment for those responsible.
Mr. Pavlopoulos, and his deputy minister, also offered their 
resignations, a move that was rejected by the prime minister.
"It is inconceivable for there not to be punishment when a person loses 
their life, particularly when it is a child," Pavlopoulos said in a 
press conference Sunday morning. The Interior minister also condemned 
the actions of the rioters. "No outrage, no matter how ideologically 
established it is, can lead to such incidents as we witnessed last night."
Shortly after the shooting, which took place before 10 p.m., an angry 
crowd – summoned by text message and the Internet – gathered in 
Exarchia. They clashed with police, shouting "Murderers in uniform," and 
burned and looted local shops.
Later that night, the rioters moved to other areas of the city center, 
burning or damaging at least 31 shops and breaking windows in the 
tourist neighborhood of Monistiraki and along one of central Athens' 
major shopping streets, Ermou. Just a few hundred yards from the ancient 
site of Hadrian's Library, a charred building still smoldered late 
Sunday morning. Some two dozen police officers were reportedly injured 
in the clashes.
On Sunday afternoon, more than 2,000 people gathered near the Athens 
Polytechnic to march towards Athens' central police station in protest 
of the killings. Greek law bars police from university buildings.
"The feeling is anger," says John Gelis, a 28-year psychologist, shortly 
before joining the march. "A kid was killed just like that. It's a sign 
of arrogance by the police. It's an act against democracy."
Mr. Gelis joined in the riots on Saturday night, saying the targets of 
the unrest included banks and multinational companies, not small 
businesses. "No one has anything against the little owners."
But some small businesses had been ransacked, including a family-run 
computer store in the heart of Exarchia. Business owners and residents 
say they are weary of the unrest. "I'm fed up with this," says Elina 
Dimitriou, a long-time resident of the neighborhood. "It needs to stop. 
But I don't know who to blame."
• Material from the Associated Press was used in this story.







http://www.euronews.net/2008/12/07/second-day-of-riots-in-greece-after-police-shooting/

Second day of riots in Greece after police shooting
07/12/08 19:50 CET
Part of central Athens has been transformed into a battlefield, as 
protests over the police shooting of a teenage boy continued into a 
second day.
More firebombs have been thrown, shop windows
smashed and vehicles burned in the capital and in Greece’s second city 
of Thessaloniki.
Faced with a hail of missiles, security forces responded with tear gas. 
A number of officers have been injured. Several arrests were made.
The shooting of a 15-year-old boy in Athens sparked the unrest that 
started last night. A police statement said an officer fired after a 
patrol car was attacked by a group of youths.
Sunday’s protest in Athens started peacefully before some broke away 
from the demonstration to go on the rampage.
The disturbances have hit towns and cities across Greece. Even the 
holiday islands of Crete and Corfu were affected.
The wave of destruction has devastated Greek commercial districts ahead 
of Christmas sales.
Anger among youths has been fanned by the growing gap between the rich 
and poor in recent years.
With feelings at boiling point over the teenager’s death, two police 
officers have been arrested. One
of them is reportedly facing a charge of manslaughter.
http://www.euronews.net/2008/12/07/wave-of-riots-around-greece-after-teenager-shot/

Wave of riots around Greece after teenager shot
07/12/08 09:27 CET
Athens and at least five other Greek cities have been hit by riots 
following the death of a teenager, shot by police.
Shop windows were smashed and cars burned by hundreds of youths who were 
pushed back with teargas.
It appears the dead boy, 15 years old, was with a group of a half-dozen 
who were throwing stones at a police car. The police opened fire when 
one of them produced a molotov cocktail.
The government has ordered an inquiry and has arrested the police 
involved, who are being questioned. A large crowd marched to the police 
station in Athens where they are being held.
The interior minister has gone on television to apologise for the incident.






http://www.aol.co.nz/celebrity/story/Athens-businesses-the-target-of-rioters%27-wrath/1406361/index.html

Athens businesses the target of rioters' wrath
December 07, 2008, 09:32 PM Post Comments

Ermou Street in downtown Athens, where real estate prices are among the 
highest in Europe, was blackened and strewn with glass Sunday after a 
night of rioting following the death of a teenager in a police shooting.
At least 21 shops were damaged over a three-block section of the street, 
off Athens' famed Syntagma Square. Many shops had their doors blown away 
and were left wide open, although there was no sign of looting. One 
block was closed early Sunday as firefighters still battled a blaze that 
had left a three-story emporium a blackened skeleton with a smoking roof.
People strolled calmly through the damage, their shoes crunching on 
glass. A slight haze of tear gas still hung in the air. Repeated alarms 
drew little attention.
The riots that engulfed Athens Saturday night, spreading to Greece's 
second-largest city of Thessaloniki and at least five other provincial 
towns, were the most serious since January 1991. Then, two large 
department stores were burned and four people died as a 
firebomb-throwing crowd protested the slaying of a left-wing school 
teacher at the hands of right-wingers.
No serious injuried were reported in Saturday night's violence. And 
while clothing shops _ the majority of Ermou Street outlets _ and banks 
were heavily damaged, the numerous snack bars were all left intact and 
were full of customers in the early hours of Sunday.
A few blocks north of Syntagma Square, at Akadimias Street, another main 
Athens thoroughfare, the rioters had almost totally destroyed the bus 
stops and ticket kiosks used daily by hundreds of thousands of commuters 
in what is one of the city's major transport hubs. A few of the rioters 
_ almost all of them self-styled anarchists _ were still there, some 
still masked and some armed with steel pipes warily eyeing the riot 
police camped two blocks further on.
There seemed to be no prospect of imminent intervention, however: the 
elite policemen were casually chatting in small groups and they were 
separated from the rioters by a burning barricade, stoked by chairs and 
the plastic roofs of dismantled bus stops.




http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Riots_test_Greece_more_protests_likely/rssarticleshow/3807165.cms

Riots test Greek government, more protests planned
8 Dec 2008, 0946 hrs IST, REUTERS

ATHENS: Greek demonstrators vowed another wave of protests on Monday, 
two days after police shot dead a
15-year-old boy sparking

riots that left dozens injured across the country.

Thousands of youths clashed with police and rampaged through Athens and 
other cities this weekend, burning scores of cars and shops in the worst 
protests to erupt in Greece in years.

Pressure on the conservative government showed no sign of easing. The 
Greek Communist Party called a mass rally in central Athens for Monday 
evening and the socialist PASOK opposition, which has risen to top spot 
in opinion polls recently, said Greeks must denounce the government.

"We must answer the government's policies en masse and peacefully," the 
PASOK youth branch said in a statement.

University professors, who had planned to join a nationwide workers' 
strike against pension reforms and economic policies on Wednesday, said 
they would now stage a three-day walkout starting Monday. Blogs popular 
with high school students urged them to stay away from class.

Ignoring the government's appeals for calm, leftist demonstrators and 
anarchists staged running battles with police after the teenager's 
killing, which shocked the nation.

"Justice has taken over," Interior Minister Prokopis Pavlopoulos told 
reporters after an urgent government meeting on Sunday. "Raw violence 
directed at social peace and the property of innocent people is 
unconceivable."

The minister submitted his resignation but it was rejected by Prime 
Minister Costas Karamanlis, who has seen his government's popularity 
eroded in the face of scandals and as the world economic crisis bites.

The shooting touched a raw nerve among Greek youth, whose anger has been 
fanned by the growing gap between rich and poor in recent years. 
Violence at student rallies and fire bomb attacks by anarchist groups 
are common.

POLICEMAN CHARGED

Two police officers have been charged over the shooting -- one with 
premeditated murder and the other with abetting him. A police statement 
said one officer fired three shots after their car was attacked by a 
group of 30 youths in the bohemian Athens district of Exarchia.

A police official said the officer had described firing warning shots, 
but witnesses told TV he took aim at the boy,
identified as Alexandros Grigoropoulos.

Just hours after his death, protesters clashed with police in Athens and 
the violence spread across the country, as far as the northern city of 
Thessaloniki and the tourist islands of Crete and Corfu, leaving 34 
people injured. Police detained 20.

For most of Sunday, protesters chanting "Cops, Pigs, Murderers" rained 
petrol bombs down on rows of Athens riot police, while helicopters 
hovered overhead and tear gas choked the city.

More than 30 shops and a dozen banks were torched in the capital's 
busiest commercial districts ahead of the busy Christmas period. The 
mayor of Athens postponed the launch of holiday festivities.

In Thessaloniki, more than 1,000 protesters clashed with police, set 
fire to a bank and smashed several stores. Rioters also clashed with 
police in the western city of Patras.

About 200 protesters rioted outside police headquarters in Crete's 
second city of Chania. On Corfu, protesters smashed up four cars and two 
shops, and an 18-year-old woman was injured.

http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=99621

Greece Braces for More Violent Protests
World | December 8, 2008, Monday

More protests are expected Monday after rioting erupted over the fatal 
shooting of an anarchist teenager by police in Athens. Photo by BGNES
Protests are expected for a third day in Greece, after rioting erupted 
over the fatal shooting of an anarchist teenager by police.

Rallies now become more politically motivated, with protest called in 
Athens on Monday by the Greek Communist Party and the socialist PASOK 
opposition party.

Riots began on Saturday after 15-year-old Andreas Grigoropoulos was shot 
dead by police in the traditionally left-wing Exarchia area of Athens. A 
police statement said that one of the officers had fired three shots 
after their car was attacked by around 30 youths.

After the tragic case, anti-police riots quickly spread to Thessaloniki, 
Greece's second largest city, to the northern cities of Komotini and 
Ioannina, and to Crete.

The Greek Interior Minister Prokopis Pavlopoulos then handed in his 
resignation, but Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis rejected it.

Clashes between the Greek police and anarchists groups have quite a long 
history. A similar shooting in 1985 led to years of violence.






http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/7770522.stm

Monday, 8 December 2008

Greece braced for further protest
Police fire tear gas at protesters on Sunday in the city of Patras
A third day of protests is planned in Greece, following riots sparked by 
the fatal shooting of a 15-year-old boy by police late on Saturday.
The Communist Party has called a mass rally in Athens, while the main 
socialist opposition party has urged Greeks to denounce the government.
Meanwhile, a post-mortem is being carried out on the boy's body to help 
determine the trajectory of the bullet.
Two police officers have been arrested in connection with the boy's death.
One of them, who is accused of murder, said he fired a warning shot and 
that the boy was killed by a ricochet, but eyewitnesses told Greek 
television that the officer aimed directly.
See main locations of Athens protests
The second officer has been charged with being an accomplice.
The family of the boy, named as Alexandros Grigoropoulos, has hired an 
independent pathologist to ensure there is no cover-up.
Politically motivated
Five demonstrations are planned in major cities at dusk.
Among the protests called on Monday is a rally by the Greek Communist 
Party and the socialist Pasok opposition, in Athens.

MAJOR RIOTING IN GREECE
1973 - Brutal repression of student uprising in Athens helps bring down 
the military junta
1985 - Youths clash with police in Athens after rally marking 1973 
uprising becomes violent and police shoot dead 15-year-old boy
1991 - Riots break out across the country after a school teacher is 
killed during protests in Patras
1995 - Riots erupt after protest in Athens and revolt in prison ahead of 
1973 uprising's anniversary
1999 - Police clash with protesters opposing a visit by US President 
Bill Clinton to Athens
2003 - Youths battle police during an EU summit in Thessaloniki
2008 - Protesters battle police across country after an officer shoots 
dead a teenager in Athens

In pictures: Greek riots
Eyewitness: Athens riot

Pasok's youth wing has called for peaceful protests.
Most of the clashes have occurred in university cities and have involved 
students, says the BBC's Malcolm Brabant in Athens.
The student demonstrators have been given tacit consent to continue by 
their professors, our correspondent says.
University tutors said they would start a three-day walkout on Monday, 
rather than joining a nationwide workers' strike against pension reforms 
and economic policies on Wednesday.
Although the protests began as an outpouring of anger about the killing, 
they appear to have become more politically motivated, with opposition 
parties keen to discredit the struggling government, our correspondent 
adds.
The government has held an emergency meeting to decide how to respond, 
with the Interior Minister, Prokopis Pavlopoulos, saying the police 
would adopt a defensive stance.
'Deeply saddened'
The riots began on Saturday after Alexandros Grigoropoulos was shot dead 
by police in the Exarchia area of Athens.
The unrest, the worst in the country in several years, later spread to 
Thessaloniki, Patras, Larissa, and Volos, and the islands of Crete, 
Samos and Corfu.
Dozens of protesters and police have been injured during pitched battles 
on the streets, involving petrol bombs and tear gas.
A march by more than 1,000 people on two police stations in Thessaloniki 
descended into violence when protesters attacked police and shops with 
firebombs and rocks.
Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis has written to the boy's parents 
expressing his profound sorrow.
He wrote: "In these difficult moments please accept my condolences for 
the unfair loss of your son. Like all Greeks I am deeply saddened."
He said his government would act to stop "such a tragedy" from happening 
again.






http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=683441&rss=yes

Cop arrested over teen killing, protests spread
05:36 AEST Mon Dec 8 2008
120 days 7 hours 39 minutes ago
AFP

Two policemen have been arrested over the killing of a 15-year-old boy 
in Greece.

The teen was killed during a stand-off between a group of youths and 
police officers.

Two Greek police officers have been arrested over the killing of a 
15-year-old boy, touching off a wave of violent protests by angry youths 
setting Athens and other Greek cities ablaze.
Thousands of protestors battled police in central Athens yesterday, 
smashing the windows of shops and banks with molotov cocktails, and 
sending three officers to hospital, said police, who used tear gas to 
disperse the rioters.
And in the western city of Patras, a police officer was in hospital 
after being beaten up by a group of youths.
In the Greek capital, officers arrested about 10 protestors and about 14 
demonstrators were treated for breathing difficulties caused by the tear 
gas, said the police.
Along Alexandras avenue, at least three banks — the National Bank of 
Greece, the Emporiki Bank and the Bank of Piraeus — as well as 
supermarkets and dozens of shops were set on fire during the clashes.
Nearly 5000 people rallied outside the National Museum near where the 
teenage victim, Andreas Grigoropoulos, died late Saturday.
Grigoropoulos was killed by shots fired from a police gun during clashes 
between police and youths in Athens' Exarchia district. He was among a 
group of youths who threw stones at a police car.
One of the two officers in the vehicle allegedly got out of the car and 
took out his gun, firing three bullets at the teen, who was fatally 
wounded in the chest. He was taken to a nearby hospital where doctors 
could only confirm his death.
On Sunday the two police officers, including the alleged shooter 
involved in the incident, were arrested, police said.
Epaminondas Korkoneas, 37, who allegedly fired the shots that killed 
Grigoropoulos was taken into custody, as well as Vassilis Saraliotis, 
31, who was in the police car when the fatal shooting happened.
The demonstrations began on the streets of Athens late Saturday with 
protestors denouncing the "arbitrary" police action, shouting slogans 
against the right-wing government of Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis.
Karamanlis on Sunday expressed his sympathy in a letter to the parents 
of the dead teenager.
"In these difficult moments please accept my condolences for the unfair 
loss of your son," Karamanlis wrote.
"Like all Greeks I am deeply saddened," he said. "I know that nothing 
can relieve your pain."
Karamanlis also said that those responsible would be brought to justice 
and that "the State will see to it that such a tragedy does not happen 
again".
Interior Minister Prokopis Pavlopoulos and the police also expressed 
their "deep sorrow" for what they called an "isolated" incident and have 
ordered an investigation.
The anger spread to other cities as protesters set about 20 cars on fire 
in Athens, Greece's second largest city of Salonika and western Patras.
The facades of 17 banks in Athens and five in Salonika were damaged, 
while some businesses were also attacked. Demonstrators also threw 
molotov cocktails at the police station in Patras.
On the island of Crete, three banks in the main city of Iraklion were 
damaged while molotov cocktails were tossed at city hall in the town of 
Chania.
In 1985, 15-year-old Michalis Kaltezas was shot by a police officer, 
triggering violent clashes between far-left youths and the police in 
Exarchia, known as bohemian district.






http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2008-12-07-greece-protests_N.htm

More riots in Greece over fatal police shooting of teen
Updated 12/7/2008 11:05 AM
By Thanassis Stavrakis, AP

Protesters throw stones at riot police during clashes in Athens.
ATHENS (AP) — Rioters rampaged through Athens and the northern city of 
Thessaloniki Sunday, hurling Molotov cocktails, burning stores and 
blocking city streets with flaming barricades after protests against the 
fatal police shooting of a teenager erupted into chaos.
Youths wearing hoods smashed storefronts and cars in Athens. Riot police 
responded with tear gas while the fire department rushed to extinguish 
blazes. Several bank branches, stores and at least one building were on 
fire on a major street leading to the capital's police headquarters. 
Clashes also broke out near Parliament.
Streets quickly emptied as word of the violence spread. Local media 
reported several people sought treatment for breathing problems.
Violence often breaks out during demonstrations in Greece between riot 
police and anarchists, who attack banks, high-end shops, diplomatic 
vehicles and foreign car dealerships in late-night fire-bombings that 
rarely cause injuries.
Some believe the anarchist movement has its roots in the resistance to 
the military dictatorship that ruled Greece from 1967-74. The anarchists 
often take refuge inside university buildings or campuses, where police 
are barred under Greek law.
The shooting of the 16-year-old boy that set off the first riots took 
place Saturday night in Exarchia, a downtown Athens district of bars, 
music clubs and restaurants that is seen as the anarchists' home base.
The circumstances surrounding the shooting were initially unclear. 
Police said the two officers involved claimed they were attacked by a 
group of youths, and that three gunshots and a stun grenade were fired 
in response.
Youths burning shops, set up flaming barricades and torched cars in 
cities around the country overnight. At dawn crews cleaned up streets 
littered with the burned debris of businesses and cars. Tear gas hung in 
the air.
Sunday's riots broke out during demonstrations moving toward the police 
headquarters in Thessaloniki and Athens. Protesters in the northern city 
attacked City Hall, two police precincts, several shops and a bank, as 
well as vans and cars belonging to several Greek television channels.
In Athens, violence broke out as more than two thousand protesters 
marched to the police headquarters. Youths fought with riot police for 
about two hours before groups split off into different parts of the 
city. More violence was reported in Exarchia.
Interior Minister Prokopis Pavlopoulos promised there would be a 
thorough investigation into the teenager's death and pledged to punish 
anyone found responsible.
"It is inconceivable for there not to be punishment when a person loses 
their life, particularly when it is a child," Pavlopoulos said. "The 
taking of life is something that is not excusable in a democracy."
He and Deputy Minister Panagiotis Chinofotis submitted their 
resignations, which were not accepted by the prime minister.
The two officers involved in the shooting have been suspended pending 
the outcome of the investigation, as has the police chief in the 
Exarchia precinct.
Police said the Saturday night riots left 24 policemen injured, with one 
remaining hospitalized Sunday morning. Rioters damaged or burned 31 
stores, nine bank branches and 25 cars, including six police cars, 
police said in a statement. Six people were arrested, five of them for 
theft from damaged stores and one for carrying a weapon, it said.
Full details for damage from Sunday afternoon's riots were not 
immediately available.






http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/245081,greeks-protest-death-of-teenager-at-hands-of-police-.html

Greeks protest death of teenager at hands of police - 2nd Update
Posted : Sun, 07 Dec 2008 14:00:23 GMT
Author : DPA
Category : Europe (World)

Athens - Angry demonstrators, protesting the death of a teenaged boy 
shot by police, attacked City Hall, banks, shops and a police precinct 
in the northern port city of Thessaloniki and burned an apartment 
building in central Athens Sunday. The march of approximately 2,000 
people turned violent in Thessaloniki when participants began hurling 
rocks at police and erected barricades out of trash bins, which they set 
on fire along central roads.
In Athens, a peaceful demonstration by 3,000 people turned violent when 
a group of hooded youths among the group started throwing firebombs at 
the city's main police headquarters, causing most of the protesters to 
take shelter. An apartment and the offices of the environment ministry 
were reportedly set ablaze along a main avenue in Athens.
Greeces conservative goverment appealed for calm after a night of some 
of the worst riots in years. The violence spread from Athens to the 
northern port city of Thessaloniki, the western port city of Patras, the 
central cities of Ioannina and Volos and also to the southern 
Mediterranean island of Crete.
The rioting and protests began in Athens late on Saturday, shortly after 
the shooting in the central district of Exarchia.
Police said the initial incident started when groups of youths began 
attacking a police car with stones and firebombs. A statement by police 
said one of the officers fired three warning shots after patrol cars 
were attacked by a group of 30 youths.
One of the shots fired by the officer seriously wounded a teenager in 
the stomach. The teenager died upon arrival at the hospital.
Witnesses, however, claim that there was only a verbal exchange between 
the youths and police, and that the policeman shot directly into the group.
"It was cold-blooded murder," an eyewitness told a radio broadcaster.
Throughout the country, hundreds of riots destroyed dozens of shops, 
banks and cars. Ten people were arrested, five of them for stealing 
goods from damaged shops.
Downtown Athens had turned into a battlefield, as thick black smoke and 
broken glass could be seen from burning cars and garbage bins.
More than 25 police officers were reported injured in the rioting. One 
was hospitalised with serious injuries.
Police first used tear gas to disperse the crowd of youths. Restaurants 
and bars, normally full of clients on a Saturday night, shut their doors 
early.
Interior Minister Prokopis Pavlopoulos offered his resignation to the 
prime minister. The offer was rejected.
The interior minister said "an investigation to clarify the situation 
has already began and all those involved will be punished so that such a 
thing does not happen again."
The shooting has been described by the media as one of the worst 
civilian casualties inflicted by police in over a decade and the first 
time since 1985 that police have killed a minor in Greece.
The conservative government of Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis has 
faced a series of protests from workers' groups and students over the 
past few months.
Reports said the prime minister, whose government rules with a slim 
majority, may be forced to call early elections.
Two police officers have been arrested in the incident and were being 
questioned. Just as questioning began, dozens of people staged a march 
outside the police headquarters where the officers were taken.
"The government believes that it can rule with an iron fist but no more. 
People have had enough," said 45-year-old Architect Nikos Polynikas.
Public unrest with the conservative governments austerity measures has 
grown and unions have called for a 24-hour strike on Wednesday over 
privatisations and pension reforms and the cost of living. One-fifth of 
Greeks live below the poverty line.






http://www.dw-world.de/dw/function/0,,12215_cid_3856466,00.html?maca=en-rss-en-news-1092-rdf

| 07.12.2008 | 16:00 UTC
Greek police arrested over teen killing as violent protests spread
Two Greek police officers have been arrested over the killing of a 
15-year-old boy, which sparked a wave of violent protests by angry 
youths in Athens and other cities. Thousands of protestors fought street 
battles with police in central Athens Sunday, smashing the windows of 
shops and banks with molotov cocktails. Police used tear gas to disperse 
the rioters. Nearly 5,000 people rallied outside the National Museum 
near where the teenage victim, Andreas Grigoropoulos, died late on 
Saturday. Witnesses said he was shot in the chest by police after youths 
attacked a police patrol car. Greece's interior mininster Prokopis 
Pavlopoulos announced that anyone found responsible would face exemplary 
punishment.





http://www.news24.com/News24/World/News/0,,2-10-1462_2438713,00.html

Greek protests: Cops arrested
07/12/2008 18:50 - (SA)


Athens - Two Greek police officers were arrested on Sunday over the 
killing of a 15-year-old boy, touching off a wave of violent protests by 
angry youths setting Athens and other Greek cities ablaze.
Thousands of protestors battled police in central Athens Sunday, 
smashing the windows of shops and banks with molotov cocktails, and 
sending three officers to hospital, said police, who used tear gas to 
disperse the rioters.
And in the western city of Patras, a police officer was in hospital 
after being beaten up by a group of youths.
In the Greek capital, officers arrested about 10 protestors and about 14 
demonstrators were treated for breathing difficulties caused by the tear 
gas, said the police.
Along Alexandras Avenue, at least three banks - the National Bank of 
Greece, the Emporiki Bank and the Bank of Piraeus - as well as 
supermarkets and dozens of shops were set on fire during the clashes.
Nearly 5 000 people rallied outside the National Museum near where the 
teenage victim, Andreas Grigoropoulos, died late on Saturday.
Grigoropoulos was killed by shots fired from a police gun during clashes 
between police and youths in Athens' Exarchia district. He was among a 
group of youths who threw stones at a police car.
One of the two officers in the vehicle allegedly got out of the car and 
took out his gun, firing three bullets at the teen, who was fatally 
wounded in the chest. He was taken to a nearby hospital where doctors 
could only confirm his death.
On Sunday the two police officers, including the alleged shooter 
involved in the incident, were arrested, police said.
Epaminondas Korkoneas, 37, who allegedly fired the shots that killed 
Grigoropoulos was taken into custody, as well as Vassilis Saraliotis, 
31, who was in the police car when the fatal shooting happened.
Arbitrary action
The demonstrations began on the streets of Athens late Saturday with 
protestors denouncing the "arbitrary" police action, shouting slogans 
against the right-wing government of Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis.
Karamanlis on Sunday expressed his sympathy in a letter to the parents 
of the dead teenager.
"In these difficult moments please accept my condolences for the unfair 
loss of your son," Karamanlis wrote.
"Like all Greeks I am deeply saddened," he said. "I know that nothing 
can relieve your pain."
Karamanlis also said that those responsible would be brought to justice 
and that "the State will see to it that such a tragedy does not happen 
again".
Interior Minister Prokopis Pavlopoulos and the police also expressed 
their "deep sorrow" for what they called an "isolated" incident and have 
ordered an investigation.
The anger spread to other cities as protesters set about 20 cars on fire 
in Athens, Greece's second largest city of Salonika and western Patras.
The facades of 17 banks in Athens and five in Salonika were damaged, 
while some businesses were also attacked. Demonstrators also threw 
molotov cocktails at the police station in Patras.
On the island of Crete, three banks in the main city of Iraklion were 
damaged while molotov cocktails were tossed at city hall in the town of 
Chania.
- AFP





http://www.breitbart.com/image.php?id=iafp081207111428.l7euvpxdp0&show_article=1

Hundreds protested through the night in central Athens

A protester throws something at policemen during riots in Athens. Young 
Greeks enraged by the fatal shooting of a teenager by a policeman, have 
clashed with police in central Athens for a second day of violent 
protests following the killing.







http://www.dw-world.de/dw/function/0,,12215_cid_3855610,00.html?maca=en-rss-en-all-1573-rdf

| 07.12.2008 | 10:00 UTC
Greek protests intensify after police shooting of teenager
Greece's interior minister has called for restraint amid growing 
demonstrations to protest the death of a teenager shot dead by police in 
downtown Athens. Angry youths clashed with police on Sunday in a second 
day of violent protests following the killing. The shooting had sparked 
extensive riots in several cities overnight, including Athens and 
Thessaloniki. Witnesses said that the teenager was shot after a small 
group of youths attacked a police patrol car. Police later issued a 
statement saying the patrol car , with two officers inside, had been 
attacked by a group of 30 stone-throwing youths. Reports said that 
Interior Minister Prokopis Pavlopoulos, submitted his resignation, but 
that it was not accepted by the prime minister. Pavlopoulos promised a 
thorough investigation and said that anyone found responsible would face 
''exemplary punishment''.





http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=683362&rss=yes

Hundreds protest in Greece after police kill boy
16:32 AEST Sun Dec 7 2008
120 days 20 hours 47 minutes ago
AFP

Hundreds of people demonstrated in the centre of Athens and other cities 
early Sunday, setting fire to a dozen cars, after a 15-year-old boy was 
shot dead by a policeman, police said.
The demonstrators, mostly residents of Athens' Exarchia district where 
the incident occurred, protested against the "arbitrary" police action, 
shouting slogans against the right-wing government of Prime Minister 
Costas Caramanlis.
The boy died Saturday after a policeman fired into a crowd of youths who 
had lobbed molotov cocktails at a police car, police said. The boy was 
rushed to a nearby hospital where he was confirmed dead.
Youths set fire to garbage bins in the central Exarchia district, scene 
of frequent clashes with police, as news of the boy's death spread.
Protests later erupted in Salonika to the north and Patras to the south. 
The demonstrators targeted banks, damaging 17 in Athens and five in 
Salonika, the police said.
Interior Minister Prokopis Pavlopoulos and the police expressed "deep 
regret" over the shooting and ordered an inquiry headed by three 
prosecutors.
Pavlopoulos and junior minister Panayotis Hinofotis offered their 
resignations to the prime minister, who did not accept them.
In 1985, 15-year-old Michalis Kaltezas was shot by a police officer, 
triggering violent clashes between far-left youths and the police in 
Exarchia.






http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_world/view/394710/1/.html

Hundreds protest in Greece after teenage boy killed by police
Posted: 07 December 2008 1328 hrs

A firefighter tries to extinguish the fire of a building in Monastiraki 
area central Athens, Greece

ATHENS: Hundreds of people demonstrated in the centre of Athens and 
other cities early Sunday, setting fire to a dozen cars, after a teenage 
boy was shot dead by a policeman, police said.

The demonstrators, mostly residents of Athens' Exarchia district where 
the incident occurred, protested against the "arbitrary" police action, 
shouting slogans against the right-wing government of Prime Minister 
Costas Caramanlis.

The boy died Saturday after a policeman fired into a crowd of youths who 
had lobbed molotov cocktails at a police car, police said. The boy was 
rushed to a nearby hospital where he was confirmed dead.

Youths set fire to garbage bins in the central Exarchia district, scene 
of frequent clashes with police, as news of the boy's death spread.

Protests later erupted in Salonika to the north and Patras to the south.

The demonstrators targeted banks, damaging 17 in Athens and five in 
Salonika, the police said.

Interior Minister Prokopis Pavlopoulos and the police expressed "deep 
regret" over the shooting and ordered an inquiry headed by three 
prosecutors.

Pavlopoulos and junior minister Panayotis Hinofotis offered their 
resignations to the prime minister, who did not accept them.

In 1985, 15-year-old Michalis Kaltezas was shot by a police officer, 
triggering violent clashes between far-left youths and the police in 
Exarchia.

- AFP/yt







Saturday DECEMBER 6


http://www.nowpublic.com/world/riot-police-clash-protestors-outside-university-thessaloniki

Riot police clash with protestors outside the university of Thessaloniki

uploaded by Teacher Dude December 7, 2008 at 09:09 am
239 views | add comment | 0 recommendations

The death of 15 year old in central Athens during clashes with police in 
the Exearchia district has sparked off a series of violent protests in 
the Greek capital and other major cities. Thessaloniki, Patras, and 
Crete all witnessed violent clashes between demonstrators and riot police.
According to official reports Andreas Grigoropoulos died after being 
shot at 9pm by police guarding the Exarcheia police station, which due 
to its proximity to the university of Athens is often a traget for 
attacks by anarchist and other leftist groups.
News of the death quickly spread via the internet, sms and word of mouth 
leading to protests across Greece. Today's marches quickly turned 
violent as enraged demnstrators took our their anger on banks, shops and 
police stations.
In Thessaloniki, Greece's second city the central Leukos Pyrgos police 
station was attacked by masked anarchists with rocks and molotov 
cocktails. The police replied with tear gas and flash grenades causing 
panic and chaos amongst the thousands of marchers not involved in the 
violence.
TV images being shown live on Greek TV show central Athens swathed in 
smoke and tear gas and tens of small fires burn unattended as the fire 
fighters are unable to put them out.
Although violent scenes are not uncommon in Greece the extent, duration 
and intensity of the riots seems to have taken the authorities by 
surprise.In addition the fact that many of those who took in protest 
marches were neither young nor students is indicative of the fact that 
the death of the teenager has angered many Greeks. Case in point was the 
pensioner, who stood in front of a phalanx of riot police, apoplectic 
with rage shouting, "cops, killer, pigs" during the march in Thessaloniki
The events couldn't have come at a worst time for the conservative New 
Democracy government which has been losing support due to its handing of 
the recent economic crisis and the alleged involvement of many senior 
officials in the Vatopedi corruption scandal.







http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2008-12-06-greece-riot_N.htm

Witnesses: Greek cops kill teen; riots erupt in 2 cities
Updated 12/7/2008 7:48 AM | Comments 28 | Recommend 5

ATHENS (AP) — Hundreds of rioters are fighting pitched battles with 
police in the cities of Athens and Thessaloniki following the fatal 
shooting of a 16-year-old boy in central Athens Saturday night.
According to witnesses, the shooting occurred around 9:00 p.m. when a 
small group of youths attacked a police patrol car. A police officer 
fired three shots, hitting the teenager in the chest. Witness accounts 
diverge widely over what happened.
Several hours after the incident, police issued a statement saying the 
patrol car, with two officers inside, was attacked by a group of 30 
stone-throwing youths while patrolling the central district of Exarchia.
According to the statement, the two officers left their car to confront 
the rioters. "The two (police officers) maintain that they were attacked 
again and responded, with one firing a stun grenade and the other, by 
shooting three times, resulting in the fatal wounding of the minor," the 
statement said.
Two Greek TV stations said the youth was rushed to a hospital but died 
upon arrival.
FIND MORE STORIES IN: Athens | Greece | Crete | National Technical 
University of Athens | Iraklio | Independent Media Center
The two officers and the local precinct commander have been suspended 
pending an investigation, the statement said.
"The government expresses its profound regret over this incident. An 
inquiry on the circumstances of the death has already begun and, if the 
policemen are found to have been derelict in their duty, the punishment 
will be exemplary," Interior Minister Prokopis Pavlopoulos said in a 
statement.
The news enraged hundreds of youths in the area who began rioting by 
attacking other police cars with stones and firebombs. Police responded 
by firing tear gas at the crowd, evacuating some restaurants in the 
area, and closing several streets to all traffic.
A few hours after the rioting began, the youths appeared to divide into 
at least three separate groups and there was a lull in the fighting.
At least one teenager was arrested, but no casualties were reported 
among the rioters or police.
Shortly after midnight, rioting resumed with increased intensity, with 
some protesters marching through the city center and others fighting 
police outside the National Technical University of Athens nearby. 
Police are making heavy use of tear gas, and rioters are hitting them 
with stones, firebombs and other projectiles.
In the northern city of Thessaloniki, dozens of youths attacked a police 
precinct in the city center and several others have blockaded a central 
city artery, near the Thessaloniki University campus.
Calls are being posted at websites, including the Independent Media 
Center, for more people to join the protests in Greece's two main 
cities, as well as the city of Iraklio, on the island of Crete.





http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/uncategorized/one-dead-in-protests-in-greece_100127992.html

One dead in protests in Greece
December 7th, 2008 - 6:15 am ICT by IANS -
Athens, Dec 7 (DPA) A 16-year-old died Saturday in clashes between 
demonstrators and police in the Greek capital Athens, media reports 
said.A policeman intended to deliver a warning shot, but the bullet hit 
the young man in the chest, the report said.
The police officer was sitting in an official car with a colleague when 
demonstrators attacked the vehicle with rocks and other objects.