Greece: 3rd Night of Riots Over Police Shooting of Roma Teen

Clashes broke out for a third night Thursday outside Roma settlements near Athens over the police shooting of a teenage Roma boy in northern Greece, after the government issued a public appeal for calm.

Authorities ordered road closures lasting several hours northwest of the capital after youths from the settlements set fire to tires and trash bins. Earlier, police carried out multiple raids at settlements in the area and made seven arrests for drug possession, while detaining another four people for questioning, authorities said.

The violence broke out following the shooting Monday in Greece’s second-largest city, Thessaloniki. The 16-year-old was shot in the head and critically injured during a police chase after he allegedly pulled out of a gas station without paying a 20 euro ($21) bill.

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Police have said the youth had tried to ram one of the police motorbikes involved in the chase with his pickup truck, and the police officer said during a preliminary court appearance that he fired because he believed his colleagues’ lives were in danger.

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