Greece's Syriza leader Alexis Tsipras ends coalition bid

The leader of Greece's far-left Syriza bloc, Alexis Tsipras, says he is abandoning effort to form a government.

Mr Tsipras had sought to form a coalition based on tearing up the terms of the country's EU/IMF bailout deal, after Syriza came second in inconclusive elections on Sunday.

He met leaders from the two mainstream pro-bailout parties, Pasok and New Democracy, but no deal was reached.

Pasok leader Evangelos Venizelos is now expected to try to form a coalition.

But if he fails, Greece could face fresh elections within weeks. An earlier attempt by New Democracy (ND) leader Antonis Samaras to forge a coalition failed on Monday.

After talks with Pasok and ND failed on Wednesday, Mr Tsipras told Syriza MPs: "We cannot make true our dream of a left-wing government."

Financial chaos has sparked huge social unrest in Greece and led to a deep mistrust of the parties considered to be the architects of austerity.