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On the 13th (local time), a 16-year-old Romani boy was shot and killed by police in Greece, sparking protests condemning the incident in the capital, Athens.
[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Sung-wook] In Thessaloniki, Greece's second-largest city, a tragic incident occurred where a 16-year-old Romani boy was shot and killed by police over just 30,000 won. This sparked protests across Greece condemning police overreaction and racial discrimination against the Romani community.

According to the British Guardian and others on the 14th (local time), Kostas Fragulis (16), a Romani boy, fled without paying 20 euros (about 27,000 won) for fuel at a gas station in Thessaloniki on the 5th. Four police officers on motorcycles chased the boy, during which one officer shot him in the head to apprehend him. The boy was then taken to Hippocrates Hospital for surgery but fell into critical condition and died on the 13th, eight days after the incident.

The Romani community criticized the police shooting as racially motivated. Last year in Greece, a similar incident occurred near Athens in Piraeus, where a 15-year-old boy and a 20-year-old man were shot and killed by police while fleeing after stealing a car. At that time, the spokesperson for Greece's main opposition party Syriza stated in a press release, "We can no longer tolerate the police brutality that threatens the lives of children under 16 for trivial reasons in Greek society." In 2008, the fatal shooting of a 15-year-old boy by police also sparked large-scale anti-government protests.

Related to this incident, violent protests against police suppression erupted across Greece. In Thessaloniki, about 2,500 citizens, including members of the Romani community, took to the streets, blocking roads and setting tires on fire in outrage. Police responded with tear gas. Additionally, around 50 university students in the area threw Molotov cocktails at riot police stationed near the campus, escalating the protests. Similar demonstrations occurred in the capital Athens and southeastern areas such as Aspropyrgos and Chalkida.

Immediately after the boy fell into critical condition, about 1,500 enraged citizens in Thessaloniki threw stones and Molotov cocktails at police and looted stores. Protesters shouted, "It wasn’t about the fuel or the money. The police shot because he was Romani." In Athens, hundreds gathered in the streets for peaceful protests condemning the police shooting. They waved signs reading, "The police shot because the boy was Romani," demanding strict accountability for the officers involved and measures to prevent recurrence.

As the protests turned violent, the boy’s family and local community urged demonstrators to protest peacefully. Antonis Tasius, chairman of the Romani community, said, "Everyone here is crying. It is unfair for the child to leave like this," adding, "We feel immense pain." Takis Theodorikakos, Greece’s Minister of Citizen Protection, expressed on Twitter, "I am deeply saddened by the death of the 16-year-old boy," and "I offer my deepest condolences to the family," but also stated, "This case is under investigation by our judicial system to determine the facts and responsibility, and we should all respect this process."

The police explained that the boy was driving a truck, violated traffic signals, and tried to collide with the police motorcycle, and the shooting occurred while trying to stop him. The officer who fired the shot appeared in court last week, saying, "I fired my weapon to stop the truck out of fear for my colleagues’ lives," and "I aimed at the tires, not the driver." He is currently suspended from duty, arrested, and under investigation, with a decision on detention expected within days.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.