Public sector workers in Greece have launched a nationwide strike in protest at government measures to tackle the country’s huge budget deficit.

Flights have been grounded, many schools are closed and hospitals are operating an emergency-only service.

The government wants to freeze pay, gather more taxes and reform pensions.

EU leaders will discuss the issue during a summit in Brussels on Thursday amid concern the Greek crisis could threaten the credibility of the euro.

Despite heavy rain, there were rallies across the country, with hundreds of striking workers and pensioners gathering in the centre of Athens ahead of a planned protest there.

Public anger

The BBC’s Malcolm Brabant reports from the capital that the rallies have been mainly peaceful, but in one incident police fired tear gas at rubbish collectors who tried to drive through a police cordon.

Some demonstrators threw stones at the police but the trouble quickly died out.

The unions regard the austerity programme as a declaration of war against the working and middle classes, our correspondent says, and their resolve is strengthened by their belief that this crisis has been engineered by external forces, such as international speculators and European central bankers.

“It’s a war against workers and we will answer with war, with constant struggles until this policy is overturned,” said Christos Katsiotis, a union member affiliated to the Communist Party, at the Athens rally.