Offshoots of left-wing November 17 group cited in renewed terror activity in Greece
Tuesday, September 29, 2009 E-Mail this story Free Headline Alerts
ATHENS Ñ Greece is monitoring indications that spinoffs of a banned terrorist group are organizing.
Officials said left-wing insurgency groups were showing signs of expansion in both membership and operations. They said the groups were targeting the Athens government and Western presence in Greece.
"There have not been dramatic developments, but there are signs that terrorism is growing steadily," an official said.
On Sept. 23, a bomb exploded outside the home of an opposition parliamentarian, Louka Katseli, in Athens. The following day, Greek police arrested four people believed linked to a left-wing insurgency group, called Conspiracy Nuclei of Fire.
Officials said some of the attacks have been attributed to offshoots of the November 17 group, once the leading insurgency network in Greece.
In 2001, police and security forces captured most of the leaders of the group, a move that resulted in a lull in insurgency strikes. "For all those arrested, there is evidence of participation in a criminal organization with the intention of committing felonies," Greek police spokesman Panagiotis Stathis told a news conference on Sept. 24.
Conspiracy Nuclei of Fire has been linked to several attacks on prominent Greeks in 2009. In May, the group was said to have thrown several firebombs and explosives.