Athens, Dec 7, (dpa/GNA) – Numerous people took to the streets in Greece on Saturday, to commemorate a 15-year-old boy who died 17 years ago, after being shot by police.
In Athens, masked people broke away from a peaceful demonstration and attacked the police with Molotov cocktails and stones. Chaos ensued in parts of central Athens and the Exarchia district, television station ERT reported. The police used tear gas and batons to quel the riots and dozens of people were arrested.
Every year on the anniversary of the 15-year-old’s death, left-wing extremists try to plunge Athens and other cities into chaos. After the fatal shooting, the Greek capital was swept by an unprecedented wave of violence in December 2008.
The damage at that time ran into hundreds of millions of euros, according to government estimates. The shooter is serving a life sentence handed down by the courts.
GNA