Black-clad demonstrators hurled stones and fire bombs at police in front of the Greek parliament on Wednesday as tens of thousands rallied for a nationwide general strike to coincide with a vote on painful new austerity measures.
For the first time since the outbreak of the crisis two years ago, protesters pushed up to the steps of the parliament building itself, setting fire to a sentry box occupied by the ceremonial guards who stand watch over the main symbols of the Greek state.
Prime Minister George Papandreou, trailing badly in opinion polls, has appealed for support from Greeks before parliament votes on the latest measures which include tax hikes, wage cuts and public sector layoffs.
The mood was furious among demonstrators, fed up after repeated doses of austerity and increasingly hostile to both their own political leaders and international lenders demanding ever tougher measures to cut Greece's towering public debt.
The boom of tear gas canisters fired by police rang out, and black clouds of smoke from petrol bombs hung over Syntagma Square, scene of violent clashes between police and demonstrators at anti-austerity protests in June.
The clashes overshadowed the start of a 48-hour strike which shut down government departments, businesses and public services, as well as shops and bakeries. Flights were canceled.
Several injuries were reported, mainly from minor burns and cuts to the head. There were also serious clashes away from the scene of the main rally, which attracted more than 100,000 people, according to police estimates.
Inside parliament, there was a bitter tang of tear gas in the air as deputies debated the bill ahead of a vote later on Wednesday.
More than 7,000 police had been assigned to Athens to deal with anticipated trouble with hundreds in riot gear near parliament. They mostly stood their ground, without launching major charges on demonstrators.
Most of the violence appeared to be the work of a hard core group of younger demonstrators and as the violence continued, older members of the crowd moved away from the area directly in front of the parliament.
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