At least 13 people were arrested near the centre of Athens, after rioting in the aftermath of the killing of George Floyd that happened on a different continent.
Following the incidents in the suburb of Kolonaki on Wednesday, when protesters smashed shop windows, a new rally took place in protest of the killing of African-American George Floyd by police in the American city of Minneapolis.
Small scale violence was recorded at Syntagma Square early Friday night, when young people threw stones, flares and various other objects at the police forces, who tried to repel them.
Police in riot gear stormed the rally on Friday, removing hundreds of protesters and arresting 13 people.
There were about 30 hooded men.
According to the report, the number of participants in the rally exceeded one thousand people.
In a similar march on Wednesday, firebombs were hurled outside the US Embassy in Athens. Reuters journalists saw demonstrators throw several flaming objects which erupted into flames on the street towards the heavily-guarded embassy in central Athens. Police responded with rounds of teargas.
George Floyd died when Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin used his knee to have Floyd in a chokehold for over 8 minutes, with the victim pleading for his mother and repeatedly saying that he cannot breathe.
Yesterday, Minneapolis banned chokeholds by police and to require officers to try to stop any other officers they see using improper force, in the first concrete steps to remake the city's police department since Floyd's killing on May 25.
The City Council approved the agreement 12-0.
Human Rights Commissioner Rebecca Lucero said the changes are necessary to stop ongoing harm to people of colour "who have suffered generational pain and trauma as a result of systemic and institutional racism."
"This is just a start," Commissiner Lucero said.
"There is a lot more work to do here, and that work must and will be done with speed and community engagement."
