ATHENS (Reuters) – A Greek police officer was seriously injured on Tuesday after clashes erupted during a demonstration in a suburb of Athens against police violence, caused by a video that appeared to show a man beaten by local officers on Sunday .
More than 5,000 people marched through the densely populated residential area of Nea Smyrni. Some banners read “Policemen in our neighborhoods.”
Police later fired tear gas to disperse groups of masked protesters who broke away from the march and threw petrol bombs, stones and other objects at them, igniting rubbish bins.
During the clashes, a Reuters photographer saw a group of protesters attacking an officer, leaving him lying on the ground with his head bleeding.
As the clashes continued throughout the evening, at least three police officers were injured and 10 arrests were made, police said.
Many protests are becoming violent in Greece, which has emerged from a ten-year financial and social crisis and has been criticized by human rights groups for law enforcement actions.
The incident presented in the amateur video was condemned by the opposition parties. Authorities are investigating the use of force by police, who said they were called to check that the blocking rules are being followed.
An ombudsman examining the case said this week that complaints about police brutality have increased as frustration increases with the restrictions on traffic and economic activity imposed by the coronavirus pandemic.
In a brief televised statement, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said the violence seen on Tuesday must end.
Referring to the injured policeman, he asked for restraint: “I am addressing the young people, who are destined to create and not to destroy. Blind anger leads nowhere. ”
Reporting by Alkis Konstantinidis and Renee Maltezou; Editing by Kevin Liffey and Jonathan Oatis