ATHENS 

Thousands of people staged protests in two major cities in Greece against the country's deployment of the frigate Hydra to the Red Sea as part of the European Union's Aspides mission to protect shipping in the vital waterway, local media reported.

In the northern port city of Thessaloniki, a crowd that included some uniformed service members of the armed forces marched down the main streets of the city to show their opposition to “imperialist wars” and Greece's involvement following a call by the Greek Communist Party (KKE), said the 902.gr news portal.

They carried banners and chanted slogans demanding the withdrawal of the frigate and the closure of NATO bases on Greek soil.

The frigate is part of the Aspides mission, which aims to defend cargo ships in the Red Sea against attacks by Yemen's Houthi group.

In the central city of Larissa, a group of people with the KKE staged a protest in front of the hotel where US Ambassador George Tsounis was scheduled to address a business association meeting.

Saying that the US ambassador is unwelcome in Larissa, they burned NATO and US flags.

Later in the day, a bigger group marched through the city center to express their opposition to the government's policies, which they said are pro-Western and pro-Israel, and their support for Palestine.