VZCZCXRO0806
OO RUEHAG RUEHDBU RUEHFL RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHNP RUEHROV RUEHSL RUEHSR
DE RUEHTH #1591/01 3031535
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O R 301535Z OCT 09
FM AMEMBASSY ATHENS
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 0927
INFO EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ATHENS 001591 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
AMEMBASSY ANKARA PASS TO AMCONSUL ADANA 
AMEMBASSY ASTANA PASS TO USOFFICE ALMATY 
AMEMBASSY BERLIN PASS TO AMCONSUL DUSSELDORF 
AMEMBASSY BERLIN PASS TO AMCONSUL LEIPZIG 
AMEMBASSY BELGRADE PASS TO AMEMBASSY PODGORICA 
AMEMBASSY HELSINKI PASS TO AMCONSUL ST PETERSBURG 
AMEMBASSY ATHENS PASS TO AMCONSUL THESSALONIKI 
AMEMBASSY MOSCOW PASS TO AMCONSUL VLADIVOSTOK 
AMEMBASSY MOSCOW PASS TO AMCONSUL YEKATERINBURG 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 2019/10/30 
TAGS: PTER PGOV ASEC ABLD GR
SUBJECT: GREEK DOMESTIC TERRORISTS STRIKE POLICE STATION 
 
ATHENS 00001591  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
CLASSIFIED BY: Daniel V. Speckhard, Ambassador; REASON: 1.4(B), (D) 
 
Summary 
 
------- 
 
¶1. (SBU) A group of six unidentified individuals carried out an 
attack with automatic weapons on the police station in the Athens 
suburb of Agia Paraskevi, eight kilometers north of the Embassy, on 
the evening of October 27, wounding six police officers, one of 
them seriously.  In addition to firing a reported 100 rounds in the 
fifteen-second attack, the assailants also apparently threw a hand 
grenade.  The attack is the latest example in the upsurge of 
domestic terrorist activity since the December 2008 riots, and it 
underscores the groups' increasing willingness to launch large 
attacks with the potential for collateral damage.  End Summary. 
 
 
 
A New Attack 
 
---------- 
 
¶2. (C) According to police sources, the attack was carried out by 
four individuals on two motorcycles, who are believed to have 
followed a four-officer foot patrol to the station before the 
attack, which occurred at 2145 local time, close to the 2200 shift 
change when more police officers would be outside the station.  A 
third motorcycle with two riders stood at the top of the street, 
blocking the road.  The attackers dismounted the motorcycles and 
fired a reported 100 rounds, believed to be from AK-47s.  Witnesses 
also heard the sound of an explosion, which is believed to have 
come from a hand grenade.  The attackers then walked back to the 
motorcycles and sped away.  They switched to different motorcycles, 
all of which were stolen, during their getaway.  Police later 
located the abandoned motorcycles (two of which were left with 
motors and lights on outside a metro station) but the assailants 
escaped. 
 
 
 
¶3. (SBU) Six police officers were wounded in the attack; the most 
seriously injured is still  unconscious and her recovery is unsure. 
Following the attack, a seventh person - a civilian bystander - was 
taken to a nearby hospital in a state of shock.  On October 28, new 
Minister of Citizens' Protection Mihalis Chrysochoidis called the 
attack a "blind blow aimed at the whole of Greek society" and 
declared "these cowardly assassins will be arrested and brought to 
justice."  Some commentators have suggested the attack could have 
been prompted by the Ministry of Citizens' Protection's 
announcement October 26 of a 600,000-euro reward for information 
leading to the arrest of three accused bank robbers, whose past 
crimes (the most recent in 2006) are believed to be tied to 
domestic terrorist organizations.  The investigation has revealed, 
however, that some of the motorcycles were stolen prior to the 
reward announcement, suggesting that plans for this attack were 
already in the works.  The newspaper Eleftherotypia reported 
October 30 that it had received a "very strange" proclamation of 
responsibility from a previously unknown group called Bands of 
Proletarian People's Self-Defense.  It is not yet clear if this 
claim of responsibility is credible. 
 
 
 
Comment 
 
------ 
 
¶4. (C) This is the latest - and one of the most serious - attacks 
on police since the December 6, 2008, killing of a teenager 
provoked major riots and turned the Greek police into the most 
popular target for domestic terrorist organizations, including 
Revolutionary Struggle and Sect of Revolutionaries.  (Other leading 
targets are banks and other symbols of capitalism.)  Several 
officers have been wounded, and one was killed in an 
execution-style attack in June.  Particularly troubling is the 
increasing willingness of Greek terrorist groups to engage 
indiscriminate attacks that run the risk of civilian casualties. 
The attack is also a major test for Chrysochoidis and the rest of 
the new Greek government, who have been at pains to demonstrate 
they will be tough on violent groups despite the ruling PASOK 
party's leftist orientation.  With a number of significant dates on 
the calendar before the end of the year - the traditional November 
17 protest, the December 6, 2008 anniversary of the killing of the 
teenager, and the scheduled December 15, 2009 start date of the 
trial of the officer who shot the teenager - most observers expect 
the confrontation between the state and domestic terrorists to get 
worse before it gets better.  Another incident took place in the 
early hours earlier today, October 30, 2009, when a small bomb went 
off at the entrance to the apartment building of opposition MP 
Marieta Yannakou, who sponsored controversial education reform 
legislation several years ago.  As of September 2009, over 330 
security incidents (defined to include incendiary and explosive 
attacks, as well as those involving small arms, grenades, and other 
infantry-style weaponry) have been noted by the Embassy, a record 
number for any year, and one we have reached with three more active 
months to go in the calendar year. 
Speckhard