ATHENS, Greece — Police detained several dozen people and fired tear gas in Athens Tuesday as hundreds of protesters defied a ban on gatherings of more than three people to mark the anniversary of the crushing of a 1973 student uprising against the military junta then ruling Greece.
Nov. 17, the day the uprising was quashed, is marked each year with wreath-laying ceremonies at the Athens Polytechnic commemorating those who died there, followed by marches to the U.S. Embassy. The United States had backed the dictatorship that ruled Greece for seven years from 1967.
But the government banned this year's events, citing public health concerns as the country struggles to contain a resurgence of the coronavirus that is straining hospitals and leading to record numbers of deaths. A nationwide lockdown has been imposed until the end of the month, but authorities tightened restrictions during the Polytechnic anniversary, banning gatherings of four or more people from Nov. 15-18.
Thousands of police were deployed in Athens and the northern city of Thessaloniki to prevent marches. The annual Polytechnic marches often turn violent, with protesters clashing with riot police.
Left-wing opposition parties decried the ban as unconstitutional, although the country's highest administrative court, the Council of State, ruled otherwise.
Three left-wing parties, including main opposition party Syriza, defied the ban, as did other groups.
A Communist Party-backed union held an initial brief gathering outside the U.S. Embassy Tuesday morning, with about 250 people wearing masks and marching in formation, maintaining distance from one another.
But a later, larger gathering by about 1,500 people in central Athens dissolved after police detained several people and eventually used tear gas and a water cannon.
