Α makeshift explosive device detonated outside the offices of Hellenic Train in central Athens at roughly 21.30 (19.30 GMT) on Friday evening.
Police have blocked off traffic along main Syngrou Avenue, where the offices are located, only a few blocks south of the Temple of Olympian Zeus archaeological site.
Earlier, authorities were notified that an anonymous caller had called a local media outlet at 20.53 to warn of the bomb, claiming it would detonate in 35 to 40 minutes.
A police bomb disposal unit that was dispatched to the scene reportedly spotted a knapsack, fastened with lock, atop a scooter without a license plate. The explosive device that went off was reportedly in the backpack.
No information was given as yet regarding damages. No injuries were reported.
Hellenic Train is the private rail operator in Greece, after its successor, state-owned and debt-laden Trainose was purchased by Italy’s FS Italiane in 2017, a deal that came during the leftist SYRIZA coalition government.
It was two trains (freight and passenger, respectively) operated by Hellenic Train that collided before midnight on Feb. 28, 2023, claiming the lives of 57 – the disastrous Tempi accident.
However, rail network operations and management in Greece fall under the domain of wholly state-run Hellenic Railways Organization (OSE). Human error by an OSE station master, with possible egregious omissions by other OSE personnel, are blamed for putting two trains on a collision course.
Failure to install manual and electronic fail-safe, monitoring and back-up systems over previous years, if not decades, are also under sharp judicial, media and EU scrutiny.
