(28 Feb 2025)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Athens, Greece – 28 February 2025
1. Various of clashes with police
STORYLINE:
Scores of youths hurled rocks and gasoline bombs at police in from of Greece’s parliament building Friday during mass protests to mark the the second anniversary of a devastating train crash in northern Greece.
Following hours of peaceful rallies in the Greek capital, youths with hammers smashed paving stones, throwing the rubble and makeshift firebombs at police who responded with tear gas.
Hundreds of thousands of protesters flooded the streets of cities across Greece Friday in a mass mobilization, led by relatives of the 57 people killed.
The protests — among the largest since the country’s debt crisis more than a decade ago — have been fueled by public resentment against the conservative government’s perceived inaction.
Critics say that politicians should be held accountable for failures that led up to the crash, but so far only rail officials have been charged with any crimes.
The Feb. 28, 2023, disaster in Tempe — where a passenger train collided head-on with an oncoming freight train — was Greece’s worst railway accident. The crash also left dozens injured and exposed deficiencies in the country’s transportation infrastructure.
A long-awaited report on the investigation into the Tempe crash, released Thursday, blamed human error, outdated infrastructure and major systemic failures for the head-on collision.
Flights and rail services have been canceled, ferries halted and public transportation across the country has been severely disrupted.
Private businesses and public services have also been affected, with many stores in Athens closed, leaving messages of solidarity for the victims’ families in front windows.
Tens of thousands gathered Friday in front of Parliament, while demonstrations were planned in more than 300 cities and towns in Greece and abroad.
More than 5,000 police officers are being deployed in the capital to manage crowds and potential unrest.
Memorial services will be held at Orthodox churches in Athens for the victims, who included many university students returning from a long weekend.
Their families have urged protesters to keep the focus on remembrance rather than politics.
AP Video by Michael Varaklas
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