Hundreds of austerity-hit Greeks join soldiers at an army camp near Athens to eat a traditional roast lamb dinner at a holiday feast organised by the Ministry of Defence.
Hundreds of impoverished Greeks have celebrated Orthodox Easter Sunday with a free feast at a military camp near Athens.
The event was organised by the ministry of defence.
Roast lamb was served which is the traditional meal for the Christian celebration.
Easter at a time of hardship. #Greece army today providing roast lamb lunch free to thousands in #Athens pic.twitter.com/YZxhYMtuBW
— Barnaby Phillips (@BarnabyPhillips) April 12, 2015
With a significant part of the workforce jobless and salaries and pensions slashed due to austerity measures, for many Greeks it is a struggle to make ends meet.
Athen’s resident Theodoris Kountaris was one of the locals benefiting from the good will gesture:
“We all hope for something better, but the question is when will it happen? The government needs to focus on unemployment, that’s the biggest problem.”
It was a chance for locals to forget their worries, at least for a few hours.
Greece has teetered on the verge of bankruptcy since its debt crisis broke in 2009. It’s not received any loans since last August and risks running out of cash unless the government can strike a deal on reforms with international lenders.