The American embassy in Athens got hit by an RPG fired from across the street. Instead of the usual Islamist sources, this attack came from a Golden Oldie of terror -- the rabid European Marxist type:

Suspected leftist guerrillas fired a rocket at the U.S. embassy in Athens on Friday but no one was hurt in the blast, police and government officials said.

In the most serious attack against the mission in 10 years, the small rocket launched from across the street shattered windows and woke up nearby residents in the central Athens area at 5:58 AM (0358 GMT).

"There are one or two anonymous phone calls which claim that the Revolutionary Struggle was behind the attack," Public Order Minister Byron Polydoras told reporters outside the embassy. "Most likely, it is an act by local perpetrators."

The leftist guerrilla group has emerged as the most serious domestic threat since the dismantling of the deadly November 17 group in 2002. It claimed an assassination attempt against Greece's culture minister in May and a bomb at the Economy Ministry which wounded two people and damaged buildings 13 months ago.

Regardless of the source, it points out the vulnerability of fixed assets in an age of terrorism. The US has heavy security around our embassy in Greece, the result of a terrorist attack by November 17 in 1996 and the overall security issues from al-Qaeda attacks in 1998 and on 9/11. In this case, the shot came from a bathroom on the third floor of a building facing the embassy, a point that exists outside of any security protocols -- although one would hope that anyone watching a person drag an RPG and a launcher into a building might get curious enough to call the police.

This event has more to do with Greek politics than with the global war on terror, but the US had better remain engaged in getting to the bottom of this attack. More will follow if these perpetrators get away with it.

Trackback Pings

TrackBack URL for this entry is

Listed below are links to weblogs that reference Terrorist Attack On US Embassy In Greece:

» Greek Terrorists Strike U.S. Embassy from Outside The Beltway | OTB
Terrorists launched a rocket into the U.S. Embassy in Athens. The U.S. Embassy in Athens came under fire early Friday from a rocket that exploded inside the modern glass-front building but caused no casualties in an attack police suspect was the work ... [Read More]

Tracked on January 12, 2007 8:09 AM

» Mentally confused old farts target Athens embassy from Scribal Terror
Apparently some old-timey European Marxists wandered away from the nursing home and got their gnarled digits around an RPG. Fortunately no one was hurt, but where was the Alzheimer's nurse? [Read More]

Tracked on January 12, 2007 8:29 AM

» Mentally confused old farts target Athens embassy, think it's still the eighties from Scribal Terror
Apparently some old-timey European Marxists wandered away from the nursing home and got their gnarled digits around an RPG. Fortunately no one was hurt, but where was the Alzheimer's nurse? [Read More]

Tracked on January 12, 2007 8:30 AM

» Terrorist Attack On U.S. Embassy In Athens from Stop The ACLU
FOX: The U.S. Embassy in Athens was attacked early Friday by a rocket that exploded inside the modern glass-fronted building but caused no casualties in an attack police said was probably carried out by a domestic terror group. Narrowly missing the emb... [Read More]

Tracked on January 12, 2007 10:23 AM