Gov’t calls for calm amid lingering tension over Roma shooting

The government has called for calm following overnight unrest in reaction to the police shooting of a 16-year-old Roma boy in the northern city of Thessaloniki on Monday. Protesters in the industrial area of Aspropyrgos, west of Athens, set fire to a local tire business and a bus and set up burning barricades in the streets. Members of Roma settlements in the area of Halkidona, east of Thessaloniki, also set up roadblocks. ‘I would like to ask for calm and prudence from all,’ spokesman Giannis Oikonomou said Thursday, while pledging zero-tolerance for acts of lawlessness. Tension is unlikely to abate as forensic findings from the crime scene cast doubt on the account of the officer involved in the incident.  [INTIME NEWS]