Latest news with #Efsyn
Yahoo
12-04-2025
- Yahoo
Explosion in central Athens after anonymous tip off
There has been an explosion in central Athens, near the offices of Greek railway company Hellenic Train. CCTV footage captured the moment the blast appeared to rip through a backpack, reportedly left outside the office block late on Friday. Police said anonymous calls were made to Greek media outlets warning of the attack, which happened close to one of the capital's busiest highways, Leoforos Andrea Siggrou. No fatalities or injuries have been reported. Greece's Transport Minister Christos Staikouras condemned it as a "criminal act", which had "endangered the lives of people". Local news outlets Efsyn, a Greek daily newspaper, and website Zougla - both of which received a call - said the explosive device had apparently been placed in a padlocked backpack and placed on a scooter without licence plates. A police bomb disposal squad arrived too late to safely detonate the device before it exploded, they said. Staikouras, the minister of infrastructure and transport, said the attack was "an absolutely condemnable act". "This is a criminal act, which endangered the lives of people, employees and passers-by, in a central point of Athens and during peak traffic hour," he said in a statement. "Nothing justifies terrorism, no act of violence brings justice. The authorities and the judiciary now have the floor," Staikouras added. Hellenic Train confirmed no employees or passing citizens were injured and that the blast caused "limited material damage". "Our company unequivocally condemns all forms of violence and tensions that fuel a climate of toxicity that undermines all progress." Although the cause of the explosion is not yet known, it comes amid widespread public anger over a railway disaster that took place more than two years ago. In February 2023 a freight train and a passenger train carrying 350 people, headed in opposite directions, were accidentally put on the same track. Fifty-seven people, most of them young students, died. Dozens more were injured. Multiple protests have been held in Greece since, including earlier this year to mark the crash's second anniversary. Those demonstrations descended into violence, with hooded protesters seen throwing rocks and petrol bombs at police. Officers responded with tear gas and water cannons. An inquiry concluded in February that the train crash was caused by human error, poor maintenance and inadequate staffing. A date for a trial is yet to be announced. Greeks hold mass protests demanding justice after train tragedy
BBC News
12-04-2025
- BBC News
Athens explosion: Police investigating blast near Hellenic Train offices
There has been an explosion in central Athens, near the offices of Greek railway company Hellenic footage captured the moment the blast appeared to rip through a backpack, reportedly left outside the office block late on said anonymous calls were made to Greek media outlets warning of the attack, which happened close to one of the capital's busiest highways, Leoforos Andrea Siggrou. No fatalities or injuries have been Transport Minister Christos Staikouras condemned it as a "criminal act", which had "endangered the lives of people". Local news outlets Efsyn, a Greek daily newspaper, and website Zougla - both of which received a call - said the explosive device had apparently been placed in a padlocked backpack and placed on a scooter without licence plates.A police bomb disposal squad arrived too late to safely detonate the device before it exploded, they the minister of infrastructure and transport, said the attack was "an absolutely condemnable act"."This is a criminal act, which endangered the lives of people, employees and passers-by, in a central point of Athens and during peak traffic hour," he said in a statement. "Nothing justifies terrorism, no act of violence brings justice. The authorities and the judiciary now have the floor," Staikouras added. Hellenic Train confirmed no employees or passing citizens were injured and that the blast caused "limited material damage"."Our company unequivocally condemns all forms of violence and tensions that fuel a climate of toxicity that undermines all progress." Although the cause of the explosion is not yet known, it comes amid widespread public anger over a railway disaster that took place more than two years February 2023 a freight train and a passenger train carrying 350 people, headed in opposite directions, were accidentally put on the same track. Fifty-seven people, most of them young students, died. Dozens more were protests have been held in Greece since, including earlier this year to mark the crash's second anniversary. Those demonstrations descended into violence, with hooded protesters seen throwing rocks and petrol bombs at police. Officers responded with tear gas and water inquiry concluded in February that the train crash was caused by human error, poor maintenance and inadequate staffing.A date for a trial is yet to be announced.
Al Arabiya
11-04-2025
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
Bomb blast outside offices of Greece rail accident company
A bomb exploded Friday outside the Athens offices of Hellenic Train, the company involved in Greece's worst rail disaster, which claimed 57 lives in 2023, police said. The police said anonymous calls to Greek media warned of the attack near one of the capital's busiest highways. There were no immediate reports of injuries in an area neighbouring hotels, restaurants and tourist rentals. The Hellenic Train building also appeared undamaged. Greek daily Efsyn and news website Zougla, both of which received a call, said the explosive device had apparently been hidden in a padlocked backpack, placed on a scooter without licence plates. A police bomb disposal squad arrived too late to detonate the device before it exploded, they said. A nearby hotel had earlier been evacuated, state TV ERT said. The attack was similar to one carried out outside the Greek ministry of labour in February 2024. Fifty-seven people, most of them young students, died in February 2023 when a passenger train and a freight train collided in Tempe, central Greece, after being allowed to run on the same track. The accident has sparked sweeping strikes and hundreds of protests in Greece and abroad this year. It also brought about two votes of no confidence last year and in March that the conservative government overcame. The train's Italian-owned operator Hellenic Train has denied knowledge of any illegal cargo on the freight train. Over 40 people have been prosecuted, including the local station master responsible for routing the trains. A trial into the accident is not expected before the end of the year. Earlier Friday, parliament voted to refer a former junior minister to justice on possible misdemeanour charges for breach of duty in connection to the aftermath of the accident. Opposition parties say Christos Triantopoulos, who was dispatched by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis to the scene after the accident, authorised the bulldozing of the crash site which led to the loss of vital evidence. Triantopoulos denies any wrongdoing and says he was overseeing relief efforts. Greece's intercity trains went under private management in 2017, when state-owned Greek rail traffic services operator TrainOSE was privatised and sold to Italy's Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane, becoming Hellenic Train. Greek state company OSE still owns the tracks. Hellenic Train's former CEO Maurizio Capotorto has reportedly been summoned to testify before a magistrate, on suspicion of giving false testimony to a parliamentary committee into the disaster in January 2024.
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Huge protests, strikes paralyse Greece on train crash anniversary
Tens of thousands of people gathered in Athens and other Greek cities to mark the second anniversary of the country's worst rail tragedy as strikes caused a general standstill. 57 people, mostly students, died on February 28, 2023 when a train from Athens to Thessaloniki carrying more than 350 passengers collided with a freight train near the central city of Larissa. Over 50,000 people turned out to protest at Athens's central Syntagma Square, police said, with an equivalent number in Thessaloniki. Many walked several kilometres to join the demonstration as subway trains heading downtown were already jammed with passengers. "Today we must send a strong message to punish those responsible for this tragedy," Nikos Lykomitros, a 20-year-old archaeology student, told AFP in Athens. For Babis Solakidis, a 44-year-old metalsmith, "This was not a simple accident, and there will be more if safety measures are not taken." The Friday mobilisation, one of the broadest in recent Greek history, shut down schools, many shops, public services, trains, ferries and most flights. Anger against the government has grown, with opinion polls showing that most Greeks believe officials covered up vital evidence following the crash, slowing down an investigation that is still ongoing. Over 40 people have been prosecuted, including the local station master responsible for routing the trains, but a trial into the tragedy is not expected before the end of the year. The two trains had travelled towards each other on the same track for miles without triggering any alarms. The accident was blamed on faulty equipment and human error. - 'Historic proportions' - According to the victims' families, protests and gatherings were being held in over 200 cities and towns in Greece and other European countries, as well as in cities worldwide with large ethnic Greek populations, such as New York and Melbourne. In a rare move, justice officials held a moment of silence and a one-hour stoppage before midday (1000 GMT) Friday in memory of the victims. Several prominent artists joined the walkout, shutting down theatres and music clubs. Leftist daily Efsyn said the mobilisation was of "historic proportions". The government has rejected accusations by opposition parties that it was behind an "organised plan" to shield senior officials from responsibility. "Society is angry because society has been misled," government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis said this week. "One of the aims by a large part of the opposition is to lead to tension, to an explosion, through misinformation," he said. Opposition parties intend to call a no-confidence vote against the government next week, in addition to a parliamentary inquiry into whether officials were too quick to bulldoze the disaster site and, as a result, destroyed vital evidence after the collision. - 'Destabilisation' - Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who has dismissed calls to resign, has accused critics of attempts to "destabilise" the country and "sink political life into a quagmire". "In all my years in politics, I've never seen anything like this before," Mitsotakis told a business forum in Thessaloniki last week. A survey for Alpha TV this month said 72 percent of respondents believed the government had tried to cover up the case, including more than 40 percent of the governing party's own voters. More than two-thirds (67 percent) said they had little or no faith in the judicial investigation into the accident, and 81 percent said the government had not done enough to make train travel safer since the accident. Mitsotakis has long been criticised for hastening to attribute the accident to human error just hours after the official investigation began. An experts' report funded by the victims' families has claimed the freight train was carrying an illegal and unreported load of explosive chemicals, which contributed to the high death toll. On Thursday, Greece's state aviation and railway safety investigation agency said there was a "possible presence" of an "unknown fuel" at the scene. The train's operator, Hellenic Train, has denied knowledge of any illegal cargo. Τhe Athens prosecutors' office has summoned Hellenic Train's former CEO Maurizio Capotorto on suspicion of giving "false testimony" to a parliamentary investigative commission last year. There is also broad scepticism over the unexpected emergence of camera footage allegedly showing the freight train on the night of the accident, apparently showing no unusual containers. Under privacy laws, surveillance videos are supposed to be automatically deleted within two weeks of filming. jph-hec
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Greece marks train crash anniversary with national stoppage
Greece is expected to come to a standstill Friday with sweeping strikes and protests to mark the second anniversary of the country's worst rail tragedy, that left 57 dead in 2023. Mounting public anger is putting pressure on the government, with demonstrations planned in hundreds of cities across Greece and abroad to demand justice for the victims. A mobilisation tantamount to a general strike has been called by unions, shutting down schools, public services, trains, ferries, and most flights. On February 28, 2023, a train from Athens to Thessaloniki carrying more than 350 passengers collided with a freight train near the central city of Larissa. The two trains had travelled towards each other on the same track for miles without triggering any alarms. The accident was blamed on faulty equipment and human error. Over 40 people have been prosecuted, including the local station master responsible for routing the trains. "Words are no longer enough," the association of families affected by the train crash said in a statement this month. "The time has come for action, for change, for a future in which no family will have to live through such pain again." According to the victims' families, protests and gatherings will be held in over 200 cities and towns in Greece and other European countries, as well as cities worldwide with large ethnic Greek populations, such as New York and Melbourne. - 'Historic proportions' - Leftist daily Efsyn said the mobilisation is of "historic proportions". In a rare move, justice officials will hold a moment of silence and a one-hour stoppage before midday (1000 GMT) Friday in memory of the victims. Several prominent artists are also joining the walkout, shutting down theatres and music clubs. The government has angrily rejected accusations by opposition parties that it is behind an "organised plan" to shield senior officials from responsibility. "Society is angry because society has been misled," government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis said Monday. "One of the aims by a large part of the opposition is to lead to tension, to an explosion, through misinformation," he said. In January, tens of thousands protested in Athens, Thessaloniki and other major cities to demand justice for the victims. Opposition parties intend to call a vote of no confidence from next week, in addition to a parliamentary inquiry into whether officials were too quick to bulldoze the disaster site and, as a result, destroyed vital evidence after the collision. - 'Destabilisation' - Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who has dismissed calls to resign, has accused critics of attempts to "destabilise" the country and "sink political life into a quagmire". "In all my years in politics, I've never seen anything like this before," Mitsotakis told a business forum in Thessaloniki last week. A survey for Alpha TV this month suggested that 72 percent of respondents said the government had tried to cover up the case -- including more than 40 percent of the ruling party's own voters. More than two-thirds (67 percent) of respondents said they have little or no faith in the judicial investigation into the accident. Over three-quarters (81 percent) said the government has not done enough to make train travel safer since the accident. "Greek society's faith in justice has been shaken," the head of leftist opposition party Syriza, Sokratis Famellos, said last week, accusing the government of "an organised cover-up plan" that went right to the top. Mitsotakis has long been criticised for hastening to attribute the accident to human error just hours after the official investigation began. An experts' report funded by the victims' families has claimed the freight train was carrying an illegal and unreported load of explosive chemicals, which contributed to the high death toll. On Thursday, Greece's state aviation and railway safety investigation agency said there was a "possible presence" of an "unknown fuel" at the scene. The train's Italian-owned operator Hellenic Trail has denied knowledge of any illegal cargo. Τhe Athens prosecutors' office has summoned Hellenic Train's former CEO Maurizio Capotorto on suspicion of giving "false testimony" to a parliamentary investigative commission last year. There is also broad scepticism over the unexpected emergence of camera footage allegedly showing the freight train on the night of the accident. Under privacy laws, surveillance videos are supposed to be automatically deleted within two weeks of filming. jph/jvr/phz/fox
