Student protests in Athens turn violent, disrupt exams as debate rages over private universities

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Police and student protesters have clashed in the center of the Greek capital after a demonstration against government plans to allow privately run universities. Demonstrators on Thursday attacked police cordons, set fire to trash dumpsters and threw stones at riot police near parliament and later during clashes along the capital’s narrow streets. Police responded with tear gas and made several arrests. The center-right government wants to legalize privately run universities in a bill due to go before parliament this month, arguing that the reform would prevent skilled people from leaving the country and make higher education more relevant to the labor market.