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Protests turn violent in Athens, Greece

ATHENS, Greece, Dec. 6 (UPI) -- Demonstrations in Athens, Greece, Sunday marking the 2008 shooting death of a teenage by police turned violent, authorities said.

RIA Novosti reported at least 20 people were injured when rallies escalated into firecracker- and rock-throwing and window-smashing by demonstrators and retaliation by police firing tear gas.

Greek police said 16 police officers and four civilians were hurt.

The injured included Christos Kittas, dean of Athens University, who was hospitalized with head injuries after scores of protesters broke into university offices to occupy them, the Russian news agency said. The rioters pulled down a Greek flag and replaced it with a black-and-red anarchist banner as police ringed the campus.

Police said at least 300 protesters were detained Athens and the northern city of Thessaloniki through the weekend, RIA Novosti said.

The demonstrations came on the one-year anniversary of the death of Alexandros Grigoropoulos, 15, who was fatally wounded in Athens following a confrontation between police and a group of teens. The teen's death prompted a series of large protests in Greece that turned violent and forced riot police to become involved. Two officers have been charged in his death.

In anticipation of the 2009 anniversary of Grigoropoulos' death, Athens police had dispatched 6,000 officers into the streets to maintain public safety, the BBC reported.

The broadcaster said police also engaged in several raids Saturday in Athens, arresting more than 150 people on unspecified charges.

"We want to send a clear message, we won't tolerate a repeat of the violence and terror scene in central Athens, we won't hand Athens to vandals," Citizen Protection Minister Mihalis Chrysohoidis said prior to Sunday's violent protests.

Obama meets with Senate Dems on healthcare

WASHINGTON, Dec. 6 (UPI) -- President Barack Obama met with Senate Democrats in Washington Sunday on a healthcare bill bogged down by abortion, a public option and a Medicare panel.

"The president thanked members of the Senate for their hard work so far and encouraged them to continue forward on this historic opportunity to provide stability and security for those who have insurance, affordable coverage for those who don't and bring down the cost of healthcare for families, small businesses and the government," White House aide Bill Burton said in a statement.

Obama, with Vice President Joe Biden and several other members of his administration in tow, arrived at Capitol Hill several minutes late for the meeting, offering reporters only a "good to see you" as he walked briskly into the Mansfield Room for what turned out to be a 45-minute discussion with the Democratic Senate caucus.

The president's entourage included political adviser David Axelrod, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and Burton.

The rare Sunday meeting comes ahead of possible debate Monday on key amendments.

Conservative Sen. Ben Nelson, D-Neb., has threatened to filibuster reform legislation unless it contains restrictions on abortion coverage and the Senate has yet to find common ground on a government-run public option for health insurance.

Also up for discussion is the scope of an independent Medicare Advisory Board, which would have the power to rein in Medicare spending if costs continue to rise after 2014, The Washington Post reported Sunday.

The Obama administration views the board as a critical to effective healthcare reform while the AARP, a powerful group representing retirees, has said the board would irreparably damage the Medicare program, the Post reported.

Senate Republicans Saturday failed to eliminate $42.1 billion in cuts to Medicare home care provisions in the proposed $848 billion healthcare bill, CNN reported Sunday.

If the Senate manages to pass a heathcare bill, it still would need to merge with the more than $1 trillion bill narrowly approved by the House of Representatives.

Jones: July 2011 a 'ramp,' not a 'cliff'

WASHINGTON, Dec. 6 (UPI) -- U.S. President Barack Obama's July 2011 Afghanistan withdrawal date is a "ramp," not a "cliff," national security adviser James Jones says.

Appearing Sunday on CNN's "State of the Union," Jones cautioned that the date will not mark a dramatic end to U.S. involvement in Afghanistan, but merely the start of a process through which security responsibilities will be tranferred to Afghans after the United States completes a 30,000-troop surge against the country's insurgents.

"2011 is not a cliff, it's a ramp," Jones told CNN. "And it's when the effects of this increase will be, by all accounts, according to our military commanders and our senior civilians, where we will be able to see very, very visible progress and we'll be able to make a shift."

Stressing that the United States is looking through a prism of its long-term interests in South Asia, Jones said, "We're going to be in the region for a long time. We want this relationship to be, as we have with all struggling democracies, we want to be helpful. We want to transition from more of a purely military relationship to a civilian relationship."

Netanyahu: Freeze shows Israel wants peace

JERUSALEM, Dec. 6 (UPI) -- Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said Sunday his 10-month freeze on new Jewish settlements shows Israel wants peace with Palestinians.

Speaking Sunday at his weekly Cabinet meeting, Netanyahu said the move in the occupied territories makes it "clear who wants peace and who rejects peace," the Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported.

"The decision serves wide interests of the state of Israel, and it is clear who wants peace and who rejects peace," Netanyahu said. "The state of Israel wants peace in the clearest possible fashion."

Netanyahu made the comments as Jewish West Bank settlers clashed with Israeli inspectors looking to enforce the ban on expansion, witnesses said.

Fighting reportedly erupted in the West Bank settlement of Kedumin when police forcibly evacuated about 100 right-wing activists who had blocked nearby roads in a bid to prevent authorities from handing out orders to implement the moratorium.

Palestinian leaders have rejected the freeze as insufficient because it doesn't include East Jerusalem or 3,000 housing units under construction, Haaretz said.