Police fire tear gas at protesters outside Greek parliament

Greek riot police on fired tear gas to disperse demonstrators who threw Molotov cocktails during an anti-austerity protest outside parliament in Athens, local media reported, as lawmakers prepared to vote on a controversial tax and pensions overhaul.

Greek television showed police firing volleys of tear gas in response to projectiles lobbed by masked youths during the demonstration, which attracted around 10,000 people angered by the latest measures demanded by Greece's creditors.

The tensions come as Greece is in the grip of the third day of a general strike that has paralysed public transport across the country.

Thousands of protesters also took to the streets of Greece's second city of Thessaloniki to show their opposition to the proposed reforms, including many supporters of the communist-leaning PAME trade union.

The reforms to be voted on by MPs later today would reduce Greece's highest pension payouts, merge several pension funds, increase contributions and raise taxes for those on medium and high incomes.

The measures are part of an austerity package demanded by the European Union and International Monetary Fund in exchange for the next tranche of Greece's 86 billion euro (US $95 billion) bailout, but the proposed changes have sparked mass opposition. The government is seeking to adopt the reforms ahead of a crunch meeting of eurozone creditors in Brussels on Monday.