Greece: Protesters gather for strongly policed annual march
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — More than 5,000 police officers are in Athens to keep order as thousands of people gather for a rally to mark the anniversary of a bloody anti-dictatorship uprising. Violence often marred the annual march to the U.S. Embassy in previous years as groups of anarchist demonstrators attacked police. The event went ahead Wednesday despite pandemic restrictions. In 1973, police used force while responding to student-led pro-democracy demonstrations at Athens Polytechnic university. Officers opened fire on unarmed demonstrators near the Polytechnic, and an army tank smashed in the gates of the complex behind which many students were gathered. At least 20 are thought to have been killed, although the precise death toll remains unknown.