Navigate to News section

Gunmen Fire on Israeli Embassy in Athens

No injuries reported in overnight attack; far-left Greek group suspected

by
Stephanie Butnick
December 12, 2014
Police investigate after a shooting at the Israeli embassy in Athens, Greece on December 12, 2014. (LOUISA GOULIAMAKI/AFP/Getty Images)
Police investigate after a shooting at the Israeli embassy in Athens, Greece on December 12, 2014. (LOUISA GOULIAMAKI/AFP/Getty Images)

Gunmen on motorcycles fired more than 50 rounds on the Israeli Embassy in Athens, Greece at 3 a.m. Friday, brandishing the same Kalashnikov rifles used in a similar attack last year on the home of the German ambassador. No injuries or damages were reported in the early morning attack.

Greek police said the left-wing People’s Fighter Group, which they connected with last year’s attack, was likely responsible for this attack as well.

Greek officials were quick to condemn the attack, emphasizing Greece’s growing relationship with Israel. (Tensions between Israel and Turkey have sparked the recent warming between the two countries.)

Public Order Minister Vassilis Kikilias told a Greek news agency, “No one is going to affect the relations between Greece and Israel.”

Stephanie Butnick is chief strategy officer of Tablet Magazine, co-founder of Tablet Studios, and a host of the Unorthodox podcast.