Greece, France, Hit By Bomb And Knife Attacks

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News

ATHENS/PARIS (Worthy News) – Two European Union capitals faced violence Saturday as a bomb exploded near Greece’s labor ministry in central Athens, while in Paris, France, a man armed with a knife and a hammer injured three people in the bustling Gare de Lyon train station.

In Athens, officials said the Greek daily Efimerida ton Syntakton received a phone call about an impending blast from a previously unknown guerilla group and informed police, who cordoned off the area before the explosion.

The blast caused damage to the building and broken windows but no injuries, police said.

However, the attack heightened concerns about ongoing attacks on public establishments, banks, and diplomatic representations, which have generally been attributed to extreme left-wing or anarchist movements.

On Saturday, the caller warned that an explosive device had been placed in front of the ministry, which would be detonated 40 minutes later.

A bomb exploded near Greece’s labor ministry in central Athens, but there are no injuries, police said.

A Greek newspaper received a phone call from a previously unknown guerilla group and informed the police, who cordoned off the area before the explosion, which caused damage to the building and broken windows.

EXPLOSION DAMAGE

In Athens, the explosion, which caused material damage, was preceded by an anonymous telephone call to the Greek daily Efimerida ton Syntakton about an impending blast, the police said.

The man calling the newspaper on Saturday claimed to be a member of Revolutionary Class Self-Defence. He warned that an explosive device had been placed in front of the ministry, which would be detonated 40 minutes later.

As investigations continued, news emerged from Paris that a 31-year-old man, carrying residency papers from Italy and medicines suggesting he was undergoing treatment, was quickly taken into police custody following his life and hammer attack.

The attack, which injured three at Gare de Lyon train station in Paris, was another nerve-rattling security incident in the Olympics host city before the Summer Games open in six months.

Millions of passengers ride the hub’s high-speed and commuter trains. A man was seriously wounded in the stomach and underwent surgery, and two other people were more lightly hurt, authorities said.

Following the attack at 7:35 a.m. in one of the station’s cavernous halls, passengers reportedly helped police detain the suspect.

“This individual appears to suffer from psychiatric troubles,” said Laurent Nunez, the Paris police chief in charge of the massive security operation for the July 26-Aug. 11 Olympic Games.

While perceived as terror, Nunez said: “There are no elements that lead us to think that this could be a terrorist act” linked to a group.  However, he stressed that the police investigation was still in the early stages. Europe has been on high alert for acts of terror due to the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, though Saturday’s incidents appeared not linked to the continuing armed conflict.

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