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Three people were taken to hospital for injuries after a group of people attacked a student assembly at the University of Athens campus in Greece on Wednesday.
The country’s medical emergency service said those injured were not in critical condition but provided no further details.
Police are investigating the incident to understand who carried out the attack and why. No arrests were immediately reported, but it is believed that some of the attackers wore helmets during the incident.
The Greek Education Ministry condemned the violence, saying that it “insulted the academic community and undermined freedom of expression”.
On 21 October, thousands of students and teachers marched through the Greek capital to call for affordable student housing and more state investment in education.
Similar protests were held in several cities across Greece, including Thessaloniki in the north and the western port city of Patras, as well as other European countries such as Italy and France.
Many protestors waved banners voicing their concern during the march. One read: “From Greece to France, give money to education”.
Engineering student Panagiotis Moschonas, 20, criticised the conservative government for not taking any measures to help students cope with the high cost of living.
“It says that it is allegedly helping students, with a rent subsidy of 120 euros (£100) per month,” he said. “That isn’t even enough for half a rent, and it’s also given at the end of the year.”
Teachers declared a strike on 21 October, although some schools in the country remained open.
“We are striking because this situation can’t continue for our families, with the high costs, with us struggling to make it to the end of the month, with the situation in schools which is deteriorating exponentially year after year,” said teacher Ioannis Rompas.
Demonstrations in Greece have previously turned violent. Last month’s protests saw stores and cafes along the march route roll down their steel shutters to prevent windows being smashed.
Riot police closely shadowed the march, while officers conducted spot checks and bag searches on people heading toward the protest.
Student groups have planned further demonstrations this month. It is not clear whether the protests are linked to the attack.
The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA) is the oldest public higher education institution in modern Greece, founded on May 3, 1837.