Greek poverty deepens during seven years of austerity

Over the past seven years, austerity has left visible scars in Greece's capital. A walk around Athens reveals more homeless people than ever despite some signs of a rosier economic outlook. Thousands of shops, mostly small businesses, are shuttered here and across the country. In what used to be a busy shopping arcade, closed stores are padlocked against a backdrop of hanging Greek flags.

Whole families can be seen lining up for free meals at a growing number of soup kitchens.

"Every day we feed 400 to 500 people, and this number has increased even more in the past two years," says Evangelia Konsta, organizer and sponsor of the meals offered by the Church of Greece in a run-down neighborhood in central Athens.

Yesterday, International Monetary Fund and European negotiators bailout negotiators reached an agreement with Greece's government to continue rescue funding...