Left wingers stage anti-austerity protest at Greek finance ministry, as bailout talks continue

A woman crosses a street in front of Finance Ministry with a huge banner that reads: "We have paid enough, we have bled enough" hung by supporters of the Greek Communist Party, in Athens, Greece, on Thursday, June 11, 2015. After four and a half months of back and forth, Greece and its creditors remain far from a deal on what reforms the country must make to get more rescue loans. It needs the money to avoid defaulting on its debts and save itself from an even nastier mess, like falling out of the euro. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis) (The Associated Press)

A huge banner depicting former prime ministers, from left, George Papandreou, Antonis Samaras and current Alexis Tsipras, that reads: "We have paid enough, we have bled enough" is hung by supporters of the Greek Communist Party on Finance Ministry in Athens, Greece, on Thursday, June 11, 2015. After four and a half months of back and forth, Greece and its creditors remain far from a deal on what reforms the country must make to get more rescue loans. It needs the money to avoid defaulting on its debts and save itself from an even nastier mess, like falling out of the euro. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis) (The Associated Press)

Greek left-wing demonstrators are staging a sit-in at the finance ministry building in central Athens, in a protest against the radical, left-led government, which they accuse of planning new austerity measures.

The Communist Party-affiliated protesters draped a large banner over the facade of the building, which is opposite Parliament, reading "We have bled enough, we have paid enough."

Thursday's protest came as Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras is engaged in a diplomatic offensive in Brussels to try to persuade European creditors to pay out the bailout loans the country needs to avoid default.

Tsipras had a short meeting with EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker Wednesday, and another with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande. He planned to continue talks with Juncker on Thursday.