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Greece

Clashes outside Greek parliament at anti-austerity protest

Protesters clashed with police outside the Greek parliament amid demonstrations against a new battery of austerity measures. Police say a former minister has been hurt in the street violence.

Policemen try to escape from flames from a petrol bomb during clashes in Athens
Policemen try to escape from flames from a petrol bomb during clashes in Athens Reuters
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Red paint was splashed on the nearby entrance of the Bank of Greece and boarded-up shops were covered in black graffiti as thousands of protesters demonstrated on Wednesday.

Workers also staged a walkout in a general strike that brought Greece to a standstill. Air, rail and maritime services were paralysed.

According to police estimates, some 15,000 protesters took to the streets following a call from trade unions. Other protests against austerity measures are expected in other European capitals, including Brussels, Luxembourg and Dublin.

“Enough is enough,” read a banner at the head of a march in Athens.

As the demonstration drew to a close, youths with crowbars hurled pieces of masonry at police on central Panepistimiou Street and tried to block the road with garbage bins.

According to the police, protesters also manhandled a former minister who was forced to take refuge inside a building.

A bill cutting salaries in Greece's public utilities was approved in the early morning, months after civil servants in the broader public sector had also had their wages and pensions cut.

The general strike came as the ruling Socialists hurried through new reforms under a tough economy overhaul mandated by the European Union and the International Monetary Fund in return for a rescue loan.

Long traffic jams brought the Greek capital to a standstill on the third day of a strike by public transport personnel.

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