Greek President's Home Pelted with Stones

Around 30 youths on Saturday threw stones at the home of Greek President Carolos Papoulias in central Athens, causing minor damage to the building and cars parked nearby, a police source said.

Papoulias, 82, is one of Greece's most respected politicians after years of service as foreign minister under successive socialist administrations.

But his popularity has waned in recent months and in October he was heckled at a national parade by protesters accusing him of bowing to an unpopular fiscal overhaul monitored by the European Union and the International Monetary Fund.

Verbal attacks and threats of violence against Greek politicians have escalated over the past year as the country has descended into a deep recession that has left nearly 900,000 jobless.

The Greek ruling class is held responsible for decades of profligate fiscal policies that brought Greece to the brink of bankruptcy, necessitating an EU-IMF loan rescue and enforced austerity.