As protesters squared off against police and buildings burned in Athens, and unrest flared across the rest of the country, the Greek parliament approved stricter austerity measures insisted on by the troika of the European Union, International Monetary Fund and European Central Bank to win approval for a second bailout package of 130 billion euros ($172 billion).
Strong public opposition to the additional 325 billion euros in budget cuts, from pay, pensions and jobs, resulted in burning buildings and clashes with police in Athens. Bloomberg reported that Greek officials approved the measures early Monday, after hours of debate.
The deeply unpopular cuts, coming on top of austerity measures already imposed by the troika, promise more hard times for Greeks already struggling to do more with less and amount to approximately 7% of GDP over three years.