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Download Greek workers walked off the job on Wednesday for the first general strike since the country's coalition government was formed in June, as the prime minister and finance minister hammered out a package of 11.5 billion euros ($14.87 billion) in essential spending cuts. More than 50,000 people took to the streets for the first of two planned demonstrations in a strike seen as a test of public tolerance for more hardship after two years of harsh spending cuts and tax hikes. Politicians in Athens have struggled to come up with more punishing austerity measures that would be acceptable to its rescue creditors, with disagreements arising between the three parties that make up the coalition government. Greece's creditors have demanded more fiscal reforms if they are to continue handing out rescue loans preventing the country from a messy default. Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras and Prime Minister Antonis Samaras agreed on the new 11.5 billion euros austerity package for 2013-14, along with another 2 billion euros in improved tax collection, a finance ministry official said on Wednesday morning. Wednesday's strike halted flights for hours and shut down everything from schools, ferry services and hospitals to shops, gas stations and customs offices. Police deployed across the center of Athens to prevent demonstrations from turning violent, as they often have in the past. Greece has been dependent on international rescue loans from other eurozone countries and the International Monetary Fund since mid-2017 in a financial crisis that has hammered the euro currency used by 17 European nations. | 
