Booby-trapped bag injures four, including two police, in Athens blast
An explosion at a residential building's entrance in central Athens on Wednesday hurt two police officers and two civilians after a bag suspected of holding drugs was opened.
An explosion at the entrance of an apartment building in central Athens injured four people, including two police officers, on Wednesday afternoon, Greek police said.
The blast happened in the Kolonos area, in Akadimia Platonos, shortly before 4pm local time, after police received a call reporting a bag suspected of containing drugs at the building's entrance, Keep Talking Greece reported. Officers found a bag at the entrance and were injured when its contents exploded as they inspected it, police said.
Those hurt were the building manager, who had called police about the bag; a second civilian; and two officers, one of whom suffered a more serious head injury, according to Keep Talking Greece. All four were taken away by ambulance, police said in a statement cited by the Cyprus Mail.
A police official who declined to be named said the explosion may have been triggered remotely, and police have not ruled out that it was a trap set to target officers. Police are not treating it as a terrorist act, a separate official told the Independent. Officers from the counter-terrorism department joined the investigation, which is being led by the homicide unit, Keep Talking Greece reported.
Footage of the blast's aftermath was shared by regional outlets including Serbia's Kurir and North Macedonia's A1on, which also reported that officers suspected a trap for police.
Fire crews and police cordoned off the area after the blast. The incident came about four weeks after an explosion destroyed a building in the Plaka tourist district on 25 September, killing six people, including a British man, his Greek wife and four American tourists, the Independent reported.
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What we know
- Official · Greek police An explosion at a building entrance in the Kolonos area of Athens injured four people on Wednesday afternoon, Greek police said.
- Official · Greek police Those hurt were two police officers and two civilians, including the building manager who had alerted police to a suspicious bag.
- Official · Greek police Police said the bag was thought to contain drugs; the blast went off as an officer inspected it.
- Official · Greek police Police have not ruled out that the bag was booby-trapped to target officers, but are not treating the incident as terrorism.
Not yet confirmed
- Unconfirmed Whether the explosion was triggered remotely, as one police official suggested.
- Unconfirmed Whether the incident was a deliberate trap aimed at police, one of the scenarios under investigation.
How each fact is established: Verified checked by an ECTV editorOfficial stated by an official body2+ outlets reported independently by two or more news organisations1 outlet reported by a single news organisation so farUnconfirmed claimed or reportedHow we label facts
Figure history
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Why it matters for Europe
The blast comes about four weeks after a building collapse and explosion in Athens' Plaka tourist district killed six people, including foreign visitors, on 25 September. Two explosions involving residential buildings in the Greek capital within a month have put Athens police on alert, with counter-terrorism officers now involved in investigating Wednesday's blast alongside the homicide unit. It also came hours after police in nearby Piraeus closed streets around their own headquarters to check a suspicious bag, which a bomb disposal team found to be empty, Kathimerini English reported.
Sources
Reported by 10 reports from 10 independent outlets in 10 countries.
- The Independent: Athens building explosion leaves four injured after suspected backpack blast
- Kurir: EKSPLOZIJA U ATINI! Detonacija odjeknula na ulazu u stambenu zgradu, četiri osobe povređene, sumnja se na zamku za policiju (VIDEO)
- A1on: (ВИДЕО) Експлозија во Атина, повредени се најмалку четири лица
- Keep Talking Greece: Bag with drugs explodes injuring 2 police officers, 2 civilians in Athens
- The Independent: Two police officers among four injured in Athens building explosion
Source balance
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Questions and answers
- Where did the explosion happen?
- At the entrance of an apartment building in the Kolonos area of central Athens, in Akadimia Platonos, shortly before 4pm on Wednesday, according to Keep Talking Greece.
- Who was hurt?
- Two police officers and two civilians, including the building manager who had called police about a suspicious bag, Greek police said.
- Was it a terrorist attack?
- Police said they are not treating it as a terrorist act, though they have not ruled out that the bag was deliberately booby-trapped to target officers.
This article was written with AI assistance from 12 verified reports and checked under the ECTV editorial policy. Spotted an error? Request a correction.