ATHENS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 04th June, 2020) Law enforcement officers and protesters have clashed outside the US Embassy in Athens after a rally in the Greek capital to demonstrate against the death of George Floyd in police custody turned violent, the Greek state broadcaster ERT reports on Wednesday.
According to the broadcaster, thousands of citizens took part in the rally against police violence and racial equality after Floyd, an African-American male, died in Minneapolis after being arrested on May 25.
In general, the demonstrations were peaceful, although violence broke out at the end of the rally after protesters began throwing stones and Molotov cocktails in the direction of the US Embassy.
Police responded by using flash-bang grenades and tear gas, the broadcaster said. Firefighters were also called to the scene to extinguish dumpsters that were set ablaze, according to media reports.
Protests began in the US city of Minneapolis on May 26, and have since spread across the globe, after a video was published online showing a white police officer kneeling on Floyd's neck for multiple minutes while the latter was already in handcuffs. Floyd had been detained for allegedly using a counterfeit twenty-dollar bill to make a purchase in a store.
Floyd later died in hospital, and the police officer, Derek Chauvin, has since been arrested and charged over the incident. Rallies against police violence and racial inequality have since taken place in many countries, including the United Kingdom, Germany, and Finland, over recent days.
