General strike turns ugly as protesters clash with police
More than 30,000 people descended into the streets of Athens during a general strike Thursday to protest the wide-ranging spending cuts announced by the Greek government. Things quickly turned ugly, with masked protesters attacking riot police, who responded with stun grenades and tear gas. The strike was the third in just over a month and forced the closure of the country’s airports, government offices, hospitals and schools. Greek officials announced two weeks ago they would be slashing public spending by over $65 billion in a bid to curtail the country’s debt problems. “They are trying to make workers pay the price for this crisis,” said Yiannis Panagopoulos, leader of Greece’s largest union, the GSEE.