alexandros grigoropoulos

Greek Riots Rage For Fourth Day Riots in major Greek cities have entered a fourth day after the weekend killing by police of a teenager. Much of downtown Athens has been closed because of the violence. John Psaroloulos, editor of the English-language newspaper The Athens News, offers his insight. Teenage protesters near parliament in the Greek capital scuffled with police Tuesday ahead of the funeral of a 15-year-old whose shooting by police set off three days of rioting across the country. The funeral of Alexandros Grigoropoulos was set for Tuesday afternoon in a seaside suburb of Athens. Schools and universities across Greece were closed, and hundreds of teachers and students rallied in central Athens. In the western part of the city, officials said groups of high-school students attacked four police stations, but riot police did not respond and no injuries were reported. The violence Tuesday followed three nights of burning and looting that left stores and buildings gutted across Athens. Greece's other main cities also suffered serious damage. Rioting began Saturday night after the death of Grigoropoulos, who was shot by police in the often-volatile Exarchia district. Criticism has mounted in recent days of the police response during the riots and their inability to stop the destruction of businesses and cars. Although riot police fired tear gas when rioters attacked them with rocks and Molotov cocktails, fighting running battles with masked youths throughout the night, they mostly stood back as the rioters smashed windows and torched stores. From wire reports