Acropolis Bomb Exploded Outside Home of Cyprus Bank Head

A bomb has reportedly exploded near the iconic Acropolis in Athens, Greece. The blast occurred around 8:30 local time (2:30 p.m. EST). The bomb was placed in a black book bag outside a house. It went off outside the home of Nikos Tsakos, a former board member with the Bank of Cyprus.

1. The Bomb Exploded Outside the Home of Nikos Tsakos

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Nikos Tsakos

A shipping magnate and a former director of the Bank of Cyprus, Tsakos, 49, was not home when the blast occurred. A security guard employed by Tsakos was at home but was removed from the premises by police.

The bank that Tsakos was employed by were the biggest lender prior to Cyprus’ banking crisis. Tsakos serves on around 50 different boards around the world. He resigned his position on the board of the Bank of Cyprus in January.

According to Al-Jazeera:

An anonymous caller contacted a Greek daily and said the bomb would explode at 20:30 local time (18:30 GMT) outside the home of shipowner Tsakos

According to a Greek newspaper, Eleftherotypia:

In an October 2010 lawsuit, he was among those named in a money-laundering scheme to transfer 10.27bn euros abroad.

2. A Threat was Called into a Local Newspaper

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The caller has been quoted as saying:

This isn’t a joke. At the intersection of Rovertou Galli and Propylaion streets, at the villa belonging to the shipowner Tsakos, across from the Irodion theatre, a bomb will explode at 8.30pm precisely,

The daily newspaper, Eleftherotypia, is synonymous with receiving advanced terrorist warnings throughout Greek history. The paper is the biggest selling in Greece. In 1975, the radical leftist group 17 November (17N), sent their manifesto exclusively to the paper. The paper is regarded as being sympathetic to terrorism, having an official editorial line of not criticizing terrorist events until 2002. The Greek Reporter says:

The newspaper became known for its policy of publishing the proclamations of such groups without criticism.

3. There Were no Reported Injuries

Bomb greece bomb acropolis bomb

Skai.gr is reporting that there are no injuries yet. CBS reports that police were able to evacuate the area prior to the blast.

4. The Bomb Exploded Near the Acropolis

 

5. No One Has Claimed Responsibility

Bomb greece bomb acropolis bomb

With Greece’s current political upheaval, any number of groups could have committed this act.