Tsipras ‘not hiding,’ calls for ‘regroup’

SYRIZA leader Alexis Tsipras told his party's central committee on Thursday that he takes responsibility for the result of the May 21 elections. 

"The responsibility for the citizens who did not vote for us is ours, for not being able to convince them. The result was a painful shock. And the responsibility is primarily mine," he said. At the same time he struck a more defiant tone, vowing to continue the fight to ensure SYRIZA wields political clout, "I am not hiding, I never hid, I took responsibility and I fought the battle," he said.

"SYRIZA is and will remain a party of power, not a party of protest, not a party that complements the right," he declared, noting that "after three difficult days of grief and reflection, it is time today, in the Central Committee, to declare an end to mourning and sound the battle alarm." "That is our responsibility today: to regroup,...