Attack 1:
On Thursday the Greek guerrilla group Conspiracy of the Cells of Fire claimed responsibility for a parcel bomb that was sent to German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble on Wednesday of this week.
Reuters reported, that Conspiracy of Fire Cells (name takes various forms) claimed responsibility for the parcel bomb that was mailed to Schaeuble.
Ekathimerini reports that in a post on the Indymedia Athens anarchist website signed by the group, it claimed at that the parcel bomb was the “second act” of an operation dubbed the “Nemesis plan,” which started last December when the Conspiracy of the Cells of Fire claimed to have spiked popular soft drinks at supermarkets with poison.
“We take responsibility for sending the booby-trapped parcel to the German finance minister.”
“We still have the rage. We sent the package to Germany’s finance minister as part of the second act of Nemesis Plan. Nothing is over, everything continues.”
The group said that it will be posting a full declaration on the parcel bomb attack later.
The bomb was addressed to Schaeuble and labeled as having been sent from the Athens office of New Democracy Vice President Adonis Georgiadis. It was intercepted at the German Finance Ministry and found to contain an explosive material found in fireworks.
The Conspiracy of Fire Cells (Greek: Συνωμοσία των Πυρήνων της Φωτιάς) is a radical anarchist organization based in Greece.
The SPF first surfaced on January 21, 2008, with a wave of 11 firebombings against luxury car dealerships and banks in Athens and Thessaloniki. Monthly waves of arson have been followed by proclamations expressing solidarity with arrested anarchists in Greece and elsewhere.
In September 2009, following an escalation to the use of crude time bombs, four suspected members of the group were arrested. In November 2010 two more suspects were arrested while attempting to mail parcel bombs to embassies and EU leaders and organizations.
The organization was designated as a terrorist group on October 13, 2011, by the U.S. Department of State.
The police located the post office branch from where the parcel was mailed and are examining videos from a camera. A police official told Reuters…
“The sender did not enter the branch but placed the package inside a box outside that people use when they want to avoid lines.”
Greek post office ELTA said it uses the latest German-made X-ray equipment to detect explosives at Athens airport. A certified company operates the equipment before parcels are loaded onto planes. “There is a thorough investigation to ascertain any possible oversight from the part of the company responsible for checking all air mail that is sent abroad,” ELTA said in a statement.
While ELTA said that it follows procedures set by the World Post Association and prescribed safety rules on airmail, it noted that “similar incidents have taken place in many postal operators in the world.”
In an ironic twist, police said the sender’s name on the package was that of senior conservative politician Adonis Georgiadis, vice president of the New Democracy party, which is currently leading the leftist-led coalition government in opinion polls. Late on Wednesday Georgiadis confirmed that his name had been used as the sender of the parcel.
“Unfortunately it is true and not funny at all. My targeting by terrorists is continuous,” he said in a tweet. On the previous day, assailants attacked Georgiadis’ bookstore in Athens with gas canisters, causing light damage.
Attack 2:
According to the AFP, “militant” Greeks may have been responsible for a letter bomb exploding at the French headquarters of the IMF. The French news agency notes, “fragments of Greek stamps found at Paris IMF letter bomb site.”
Reuters, adds, a female employee of the IMF suffered injuries to her face and arms on Thursday when a letter bomb mailed from Greece and addressed to the world lender’s European representative blew up as she opened it, officials said. The letter, which had arrived by mail, exploded as it was opened by a secretary at the institution’s office in an upscale part of Paris.
The blast caused minimal damage to the IMF office.
A Greek return address was on the envelope which exploded in Paris, Greece’s public order minister said in Athens. “French authorities just informed us that it was mailed from Greece,” Nikos Toskas told Ant1 Television.
The explosion was caused by a device that was fairly home-made, “like a big fire cracker,” police chief Cadot said. Asked if the head of the IMF’s European office had received threats, Cadot said: “There had been some phone calls in recent days but they don’t seem necessarily to be linked to this matter.”
The IMF has been involved in talks between Greece and its international creditors on disbursing new loans to Athens under a bailout program.
IMF chief Christine Lagarde denounced “this cowardly act of violence” and reaffirmed “the IMF’s resolve to continue our work in line with our mandate.”
Ekathimerini adds…
French President Francois Hollande said French authorities would trace the “persons responsible, and we will do it with tenacity, perseverance and until the end,” adding, “I want to tell all those who work for this great institution that we are by their side.”
A militant Greek group, Conspiracy of Fire Cells, claimed responsibility for a parcel bomb mailed to German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble on Wednesday, but there was no immediate claim for the Paris attack.
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