ATHENS, 6 May 2004 — Three homemade bombs exploded outside an Athens police station early yesterday causing no injuries, but renewing fears about security in the Greek capital just 100 days before it hosts the 2004 Olympic Games.
The government blamed “local extremist elements,” apparently a leftwing extremist group, for being behind the blasts, and Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis vowed they would not jeopardize the security of the Games which start on Aug. 13.
“This is an isolated incident which does not affect whatsoever the country’s preparations for the safety of the Olympics,” Karamanlis told reporters about the attack, for which no one has yet claimed responsibility. The blasts, apparently provoked by bundles of dynamite with a timer and a fuse broke windows in the police station in the southern Athens suburb of Kallithea, as well as in surrounding buildings and cars, police said.
Police sources told AFP that the bombs were similar to devices used in attacks claimed in past months by a new group calling itself “Revolutionary Struggle”.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair and French President Jacques Chirac expressed confidence in Greece’s security measures after the pre-dawn blasts, which caused light damage to buildings and injured no one.
“We have every faith in the way they (the Greek authorities) are handling this,” Blair told the House of Commons.
French President Jacques Chirac reaffirmed his confidence in the Athens government, saying: “All nations must be vigilant and stand side-by-side with the Greek authorities, in whom I express my trust”.
But French and Australian officials already announced a review of their teams’ security plans. The Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) said it was not contemplating pulling its team out of the Games while New Zealand Olympic officials said it was too early to decide whether the attack would affect their participation.
The Games, the first Summer Olympics to be held since the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, will open amid unprecedented security.
