Third day of Rioting in Athens
ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece braced for a third day of demonstrations on Monday after the fatal shooting by police of a teenager triggered underlying anger over the Conservative government's economic policies and the worst rioting in decades.
Thousands clashed with police and rampaged through Athens and other cities this weekend, destroying scores of businesses, injuring dozens and piling pressure on the conservative government, whose ratings have already been hit by a slowdown.
"Athens and Thessaloniki under siege" said daily Eleftheros Typos on its front page, while Apogevmatini newspaper headlined: "48 hours of horror."
Despite the arrest of two police officers for the killing of the 15-year-old boy, the Greek Communist Party announced a mass rally in central Athens for Monday evening and the socialist PASOK opposition, which has taken the lead in opinion polls recently, called for peaceful mass demonstrations.
Cars and pedestrians returned to Athens streets as Greeks went back to work, but the mood was tense. In the main shopping street, Ermou, a police team began to assess the destruction.
"It is quiet now but I've never seen anything like it in my life. People overreacted," 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.