| A policeman has been set on fire as anti-Iraq war protests erupted into a riot outside the EU summit in Athens. Around 30 demonstrators were arrested after a mob broke away from a peaceful anti-war rally of 5,000 people and attacked police in the Greek capital. Police responded by firing tear gas and chasing hooded protesters though the narrow streets. Another group of protesters threw red paint at riot police, about 300 metres away from where leaders from across Europe gathered to confirm the enlargement of the group. Demonstrators set fire to banks in central Athens and smashed windows. Outside the British Embassy, youths tore up paving stones and hurled them at police guarding the building. A large banner reading "Killers, Imperialists" was hung over the offices of British Airways. Political commentators say the violence will embarrass Greece's Socialist government, which is midway through an EU presidency already troubled by Europe's divisions over the Iraq war. Rally organisers targeted their anger at Tony Blair, Spain's premier Jose Maria Aznar and other EU prime ministers who supported the war in Iraq. |