GREECE: Four police officers wounded in drive by shooting outside Athens police station

Record ID: 352490

  • Title: GREECE: Four police officers wounded in drive by shooting outside Athens police station
  • Date: 28th October 2009
  • Summary: ATHENS, GREECE (OCTOBER 27 2009) (REUTERS) (NIGHT SHOTS) POLICE CARS AND VEHICLES OUTSIDE THE POLICE STATION THAT WAS ATTACKED VARIOUS OF POLICE AT SITE VARIOUS OF POLICE FROM THE COUNTER TERRORISM SQUAD WEARING WHITE UNIFORMS INVESTIGATING SITE STREET IN FRONT OF STATION SEALED OFF BY TAPE AND POLICE CAR WITH FLASHING LIGHTS MORE OF POLICE SEARCHING SITE VARIOUS OF
  • Embargoed: 12th November 2009 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Greece
  • Country: Greece
  • Reuters ID: LVA20P40DQC7QBX2BNR3UU2N5TLT
  • Story Text: Four police officers have been wounded in a drive by shooting outside a police station in Athens, according to police.
    Police said on Tuesday (October 27) four police officers were wounded, one of them seriously, when two gunmen on a motorcycle drove by a police station in northern Athens and fired at the station.
    Two of the police officers were injured by the gunfire, while the other two were injured by shattering glass from windows, police said, adding that several shots were fired by the assailants.
    Police also said a bystander witnessed the attack and fainted.
    "These kids (police officers that were attacked) are fighting for their lives, they are just kids, these police officers, they are in their twentie's and just here to make a living. And these perpetrators think they are terrorists but they are murderers. This act is beyond any logic." said President of the Police Officers Union, Yannis Makris after arriving on the scene.
    Police believe the attack wass the result of domestic terrorism, after police officers have been targeted by urban guerrilla groups during the last year.
    Several incidents, including previous drive by shootings on police stations, the shooting of police officers in seperate incidents, and bombings of businesses and political officials offices have taken place by urban guerrilla groups since December, after a teenager was shot and killed in the street by police officers. The shooting caused several days of riots in the streets.
    The newly elected government has said it would take a no tolerance attitude towards violence and recently offered a reward for the whereabouts of three suspects alleged to be involved in domestic terrorism and bank robbery.
    In September police arrested four people in a house raid suspected of being involved in bombings.
    Greece thought it had seen an end to domestic terrorism after capturing the November 17 guerrilla group, responsible for several high profile killings, in 2002. But in 2007 another group, calling itself Revolutionary Struggle, emerged and fired a rocket propelled grenade on the U.S. embassy in Athens.
    No one was injured.
    Since then the group has been responsible for other bombings, including an attack on the stock exchange, and the shooting of a police officer.
    Other groups have also emerged with similar attacks, and have vowed to continue targeting police and politicians.
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