Gallery: Greece protests

Groups of masked protesters threw petrol bombs and stones at riot police, who fought back with tear gas [Reuters]

Three people died of asphyxiation after demonstrators set a bank on fire, in what the Greek prime minister called a murderous act [Reuters]

A fire department official said protesters stopped rescue workers from reaching the burning bank, where about 20 people were trapped [Reuters]

The violence flared as tens of thousands of people carried out protests against the austerity measures to be carried out by the government [AFP]

Police said 12 people were injured in the riots, which came amid a 24-hour strike [AFP]

Many Greeks are angry at government spending cuts, imposed under the conditions of an EU-IMF bailout [Reuters]

The government has edfended the austerity measures, saying they are necessary to avoid bankruptcy [AFP]