People flee from a burning Christmas Tree in Syntagma Square in Athens. (AFP: Aris Messinis)
Posted on 12/08/2008 7:39:25 PM PST by Blackyce
Posted
Updated
People flee from a burning Christmas Tree in Syntagma Square in Athens. (AFP: Aris Messinis)
Rioters have torched a large Christmas tree in central Athens at the end of a third day of violent demonstrations in Greece.
The tree, in Syntagma Square, was set on fire amid riots in the Greek capital in protest over the death of a 15-year-old boy who was shot by police three days ago.
The windows of the five-star Athens Plaza and Grande Bretagne hotels were smashed. More than 130 shops have been destroyed and police have detained dozens of people.
Two policemen have been arrested in connection with 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos's death but the widespread nature of the protests is seen more as a display of frustration with the increasingly unpopular conservative government.
Separately, about 10,000 protesters from the Communist Party of Greece and another left-wing party are now marching through the centre of Athens.
Earlier Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis appealed for calm ahead of the Athens demonstrations.
Elsewhere in the country, rampaging youths took to the streets in Thessaloniki, Greece's northern capital.
They hurled rocks at police and smashed shop windows. There were also reports of looting. Demonstrators threw petrol bombs and rocks at Government buildings and at random shop fronts and cars. Police retaliated with tear gas.
Mr Karamanlis said his conservative Government would take immediate steps to compensate all those whose property had been destroyed by self-styled anarchists who have gone on the rampage.
Scores of people, including 37 policemen have been injured in the civil disturbances.
In a televised address, Mr Karamanlis said the emotions that followed the tragic shooting would not be tolerated.
Confrontations also broken out between protesters and police in Berlin, London and Cyprus as youths occupied Greek diplomatic missions and burned Greek flags.
Protests have spread to more than 10 other cities in Greece, including Salonika and the tourist islands of Crete and Corfu.
Melbourne lawyer Eleni Bertes is working in Athens and described the scene on ABC2's News Breakfast program.
"We're talking about major mayhem," she said. "You have the riot police in front and them which is like a herring for them, they literally break anything in their path, literally."
- ABC/Reuters
They must not have the Christmas spirit.
Idiots.
How brightly burn your branches.
Um. *\;-|
Last night, on the news, there was also a police officer with his clothes on fire - likewise burning brightly.
Purttttyy...marshmallow time!
Cleanup in breaking news....
Looks like Burning Man!
Talk about your grinches!
Left wing hate filled pieces of filth. When do the book burnings start?
Gee, how refreshing. A riot, destruction of personal property not of Islamic origin. Meanwhile, back at the ranch … Moslems are throwing stones at Satan in their yearly religious trip to Mecca.. What a crazy world we live in. ;-)
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2145346/posts Violence, Riots in Greece - Islamic Immigration - Eurabia
Islamists calling themselves Anarchists and waving Communist party flags, and burning things in protest of the death of a 15 year old kid named Alexandros Grigoropoulos?
Alrighty then.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2145364/posts - Chanting Allahu Akbar, they wreak destruction in Athens
“It was an ugly tree anyway.” ~ Uncle Lewis
Mmmmm. Wonder if all these “youths” have anything in common? You certainly can’t tell from the article.
B.S. Look at the pictures. They are full of communist signs in Greek, not green banners and signs in Arabic.
Please, lets remain truthful and not lie about facts on the ground to fit into our preconceived notions. The one article that everyone is sighting as proof of Islamic involvement was published in EARLY OCTOBER. The Muslims did have a march in October, which is what the chanting took place at. It is not connected with the anarchist riots going on now.
Here is pic from today's riots. There are lots of them out there. There is no visible Islamic component to the signs. This is the so-called black-block anarchists. They are a huge problem in Europe. This needs to be well understood by everyone at Free Republic.
Note: motorcycle helmet, man with video camera. Not penniless refugees and the don't look African or Middle Eastern.
I know these people. They are variously referred to as "anarchists" "black-block" "autonomous" and "anti-authoritarians". We have them in the USA too. They were the instigators at the Seattle riots a few years back.
They come ready to fight police, all in black, masked with motorcycle helmets.
Here is video, their anarchist banners (black and red) are clearly visible. The BBC reporter mentions that this is escalation of frequent clashes between anarchists and police; VIDEO
note: black & red flag in right background
note: worldwide anarchist symbol grafitti
LET'S TRY FOR ACCURACY PEOPLE!!
Wow - if it was any other religion it would be a “hate crime”...
Too True: We have these types here in Genova Italy where I am working. It may be only a matter of time before they begin to upset this beautiful city as well! Thank you for setting the record straight!
“Um. *\;-|”
Over exuberant youths destroying a symbol of Germanic hegemony, nothing more! :)
Seriously, this has gotten out of hand and its the ND government’s fault. That government, and I say this having relatives in it, has become far too “European”, thus its attempt at “sensitivity” when the boy was shot. Anarchist/Communist/Student riots are not uncommon in Greece. These, however, look set to bring down the government the way the Athens Polytechnic students’ actions contributed to the downfall of the Junta of the Colonels in 1974. Greeks, in fact no Greeks, take well to government and killing a student is a sure way to get at a minimum riots.
BTW, don’t believe that Mohammedans have anything to do with this. That’s just a neo-con fantasy.
Of course AP has to blame it on ‘conservatives’....(eye roll)
“Two policemen have been arrested in connection with 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos’s death but the widespread nature of the protests is seen more as a display of frustration with the increasingly unpopular conservative government.
Separately, about 10,000 protesters from the Communist Party of Greece and another left-wing party are now marching through the centre of Athens.”
Our Greek friends never miss a chance to bash America in general and President Bush in particular.
I shall remain silent on the anarchy going on in their country.
Especially since O has supported the anarchy of the glass company employees in Illinois and Jesse Jerkson has suggested this as a great tactic for everyone who gets laid off.
Well, can we at least agree on one thing? If the Anarchists or the Muzzie Youths try this in our city, we’ll get our guns and kill them.
"Pray for Greece, because many things are happening in that country that should not be happening in the government. The government could fall and be a different type of politics in the future."
In the same newsletter in April she had this to say:
"America will be on the brink of war in the very near future. It is important that no one, no leader, or wannabe leader in this country stands up and tries to force another country to do anything. This is a very touchy time and America is in a lot of trouble with its financial situation that it has put itself in. Do not ruffle anyone's feathers at this time. Many people do not realize the power that has been given to other countries, especially when this country borrows money from other countries; America puts itself in a position that is very obliging. Therefore, one must be humble, because America does not have the power to run the world now. Even though many people who are not in the know still think that America controls the world. This is not true.
This is not a bad thing. In many ways, this can be very positive because humility can be a good thing. Every one and every nation needs to have humility and spirituality and work with each other hand in hand and be cooperative. The best thing to do is to send love to all those people around the world who are being mistreated and have their hands tied. Each individual must stand up for his or her own rights, instead of America taking on responsibility that is not theirs.
France is going to have things happen in their cities that are very sad. Terrorism will come in many ways, although it will not be called terrorism. Pray for France because these terrorists are going to be very prevalent in that country.
Also London is not finished with great terrorism, because many of the terrorists are going to try to overthrown that government, just as they will try to overthrow America in the future. It is important to treat people the way you would want them to treat you. If the whole world got together and sent out love instead of hate, understanding and compassion instead of anger and misunderstanding, it would be a better place and there would not be as much hatred being given back. Whatever you give out, you will receive back. So it is a time of constant prayer in these United States along with other free nations of the world."
“Our Greek friends never miss a chance to bash America in general and President Bush in particular.”
That’s true and unfortunate. The good will engendered by the Truman Doctrine was wasted in the American government’s support for the Colonels, the Nixon Administration’s backing of the Turkish invasion and occupation of Cyprus and America’s unprovoked attack on Serbia on behalf of the Kosovo Mohammedans. President Bush’s continuation of the Clinton’s Kosovo policies have hurt and like virtually all of the rest of that part of the world, Greece is less than enthused over the Iraq war.
I am not saying that Greece’s anti-Americanism is appropriate, but I am saying that they have reasons sufficient to them for it; its not just a generalized anti-Americanism one finds in so many places around the world.
Obama, by the way, is extremely popular across all elements of Greek civil and political society. I doubt it has anything to do with his support of employees occupying their former work place, though. To the Greeks, even to the real conservatives, he represents an end to neo-con rule in America which they think is a good thing for Greece.
0.5 LOL then. *\;-)
Anarchist movement in Greece traces its origins to the brutal military junta in the 1960s & 1970s. It ruled the country from 1967 to 1974 and it still is a sore spot with most Greek today.
Greek Military Junta of 1967-1974
In 1973 a student protest against the junta at Athens Polytechnic university resulted in the military sending tanks into the school which resulted in the deaths of over 40 civilians, mostly students, but this event was just the climax to over six years of brutal military rule in the country. Since the country has this violent past the Greek population is very sensitivity to state violence against civilians, which is why the authorities hesitant to use overwhelming force against them. To this day Greek police and military are not permitted to enter college campuses since 1973, when tanks quashed the student uprising at Athens Polytechnic. The movie "Z" is actually based upon Greek military rule of this time period.
Z Film
Its the events that took place in 1973 with killing of over 40 students by the military where what we are seeing today in Greece stems from, not muslims and not immigrants, THAT is from where Greece's reluctance to take strong action against student protests and demostrations stems from, nothing to do with political correctness, trust me Greek authorities are anything but pc. Since 1973 schools have always been springboards for such riots and the current wave of violence is no different and it also explains why many of the riots are in university towns. Students and pupils have effectively been given carte blanche to carry on such protesting, because their idiot professors have declared a three-day strike.
In 1985 another police shooting and the death of a teenager, Michalis Kaltezas, resulted in WEEKS of rioting by angry anarchist youths and months of daily clashes between students and police, those riots were MUCH worse then the ones we are seeing today. Granted these are the worst since then but rioting by anarchist Greek youths and the police is very common in Greece...has been common since the 1970s.
Clashes between the police, anarchists and other radical youth groups in Greece are common, but they have never attraced such international attention. There is a longstanding, delicate co-existence between the police and groups of far-left & far-right youths/adults tolerate certain crime in where many believe the authorities know who these individuals who organize such events are but won't go after them because their 'leaders' are the children of the elite in Greece, i.e. bored rich kids with nothing to do, but this type of anarchism isn't a Greek thing only. Such violent anarchists who clash with the police because they don't believe in 'authority' are very common through out Europe and the world.
Exarchia the area where the shooting took place is a hanging ground for anarchists along with other groups so the cops didn't just pick to be in that location randomly out of blue and it is also the area where the 1973 violent student protest against the Greek junta at Athens Polytechnic university was crushed by the military over thirty years ago.
That’s interesting. I didn’t know that. What I’m saying is no matter who’s responsible, whether it’s Anarchists or muzzies, we (the citizens of Ok, Tx, Ut, etc) should kill them before we allow them to destroy our neighbors’ property.
Anarchists are nuts, I think they are crazier then the 'muzzies' and more destructive because the authorities are reluctant to use mega force against them. When they are done European and North American cities look like they are part of war zone areas. Remember what happened in Seattle, Washington 1999 when they blew through?
Crazy Anarchists in Seattle, Washington 1999
European military and police more often then not will not hold back when going after 'muzzies' but anarchists the authorities restrain themselves because usually they are the children of native European citizens and more often then not they come from homes that are well off, so they hold back unfortunately. That's why they get away with the chaos they cause for the most part.
French Anarchists Riot 2006
Berlin Anarchists Riot
Anarchists Riot in Italy, Bulgaria, Sswitzerland, Norway, Belgium, France, Nederlands
Anarchists Riot in Germany / Rostock (G8)
Anarchists Riot in Barcelona
Anarchists Riot in Gothenburg, Sweden
Anarchists Riot in Stockholm 2006
Anarchists Riot in Athens, Greece 2007
Anarchists Riot in Italy, Greece, Germany, France, Denmark, Latin America
Anarchists Riot in Poland
Anarchists Riot
This reporter asks them for their reason or whatever their cause is and they wouldn't say...THAT'S BECAUSE THEY HAVE NO REASONING NOR CAUSE behind their moronic actions.
Anarchists Riot in St. Paul, MN 2008
Crazy Anarchists in St. Paul, MN
They are against any authority, they might be fighting the conservative governments in power now but two months from they'll be throwing rocks, molotov cocktails and concrete bricks at the far left socialist governments if they get elected into power even though far left socialists might have been supporting their attacks on police today. They'd turn on them because now its the far left who are in power....like they did with the Clinton administration in 1999. I always thought crazy anarchists would be a perfect way to take down Bin Laden, embed a couple thousands of these anti-authoritarian anarchy goons within his establishment and they'd have them fighting each other in no time....they can blow each other up. LOL!!
Media characterizations of mad mobs rioting as anarchists is nothing more than calling them lawless bands; how could anarchists unite?
You'd be surprised, they are highly organized and in todays information high way and text messaging generation getting their message out in mere minutes has become very easy. They come well prepared to fight with authorities, i.e. gas masks, motorcycle helmets, clubs/sticks to use as weapons against the cops, medical supplies, dressed in black(this is were their other name 'black bloc' is derived from), black hoods and masks to cover their faces, Molotov cocktail firebombs, etc. Other names they go by: "anarchists" aka "black-block" aka "autonomous" aka "anti-authoritarians" oh yeah and "antifa" for antifascists but their tactics are just as bad as fascists.
Greek student anarchists throw stuff at police from the Athens Polytechnic University same univeristy the 1973 riots took place where over 40 students were killed and most of todays riots are springboarding from: Dated ~ June 25, 2006 
Some additional info: according to a lawyer for the two police officers, a ballistic examination revealed that the schoolboy had died as a result of an accident after the bullet ricocheted...like the cops originally said.
BTW, here is another interesting fact regarding the kid that got killed, even though his death is not excusable what I said in my previous post that most of these anarchists are kids from well to do families who benefit from capitalism is true, the kid went to one of the most famous, expensive and prestigious private schools in Greece, Scholi Moraiti/Moraitis School.
The rioting Tuesday night was not as serious as it is made out in the news reports, Monday night was another matter felt like you were in a war zone, but Tuesday night only a few hundred idiot teenagers causing the chaos. Once the armed riot police turned up they scrammed. Today there was the strike by airlines and air traffic controllers. They couldn't even muster a few hundreds to protest. Things are pretty much calming down, only sporadic confrontations by small groups of idiots with the cops and the police pretty much had them under control. :-)
I’ll pass that along to the eremite society.
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