Strong rain calms down Greek protests

Athens  - Police recorded the calmest night since the outbreak of violence after a fatal police shooting of a teenager last weekend, Greek state radio said Friday.

There were no reports of rioting during the night, the protests dampened by heavy rains falling across Greece.

The results of the ballistic examination of the bullet which killed 15-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos on Saturday are expected to be released Friday. The policeman who shot the boy remains in custody in a high-security prison in the Athens suburb Korydallos.

New student rallies were planned for Friday and Monday.

On Thursday evening about 4,000 students took to the streets again in Athens in a protest turing increasingly violent, as clashes occurred also in other Greek cities.

Analysts insist that violence was the result of long-simmering discontent with the government over a series of financial scandals and unpopular economic, pension and education reforms.

The shooting of was seen as the last straw by many young Greeks, whose economic future is bleak in a country with a high unemployment rate and low wages. (dpa)

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