In the Greek city of Thessaloniki, three homemade bombs exploded early on Wednesday morning within minutes of one another. Senior officials described the incident as a campaign against representatives of the ruling conservative New Democracy party.
One of the explosions left New Democracy parliamentary candidate Afroditi Nestora with minor burns. Her mother suffered more serious burns and was hospitalized in an intensive care unit. Nestora’s father was taken to hospital with breathing problems, police said. The two other explosions caused no injuries.
“The inhuman, indiscriminate terrorist attack on my home has put my family in an extremely difficult situation,” Nestora wrote on Facebook.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis condemned the “cowardly, terrorist, murderous attack” that injured three party members.
According to police, all three devices went off at around 4:30 a.m. They consisted of gas canisters connected to containers of flammable liquid. In Greece, such devices have often been used by anarchist or far-left armed groups for low-intensity attacks intended to send a symbolic message.
Police spokesperson Konstantina Dimoglidou said the bomb that injured Nestora and her parents had been planted under a car. After the explosion, a fire broke out and spread further. Nestora and her parents went downstairs to see what had happened and suffered burns.
Two other residents of their building were hospitalized with breathing problems but were later discharged.
The two other bombs were planted at the entrances to residential buildings. Former New Democracy lawmaker Savvas Anastasiadis lives in one of them; in the other, apartments belong to the head of the local party committee, Zisis Ioakimovits.
No one has yet claimed responsibility for the explosions. At the same time, Mitsotakis and other government representatives warned of a possible revival of domestic terrorism.
Public Order Minister Michalis Chrysochoidis said the organizers of the attacks had “learned nothing, even from those who spent 25 years in prison.” His words, the outlet notes, may have been a reference to the November 17 group—a far-left organization that operated in Greece for decades. Its 82-year-old leader, Alexandros Giotopoulos, was returned to prison last month after a brief release.
Mitsotakis said he would travel to Thessaloniki to visit the victims and “send a clear and unequivocal message—zero tolerance for any form of new terrorism that may appear in our country.”
The attacks occurred amid intensifying political rhetoric ahead of parliamentary elections in Greece. They must be held no later than next year, though it is possible Mitsotakis could call the vote earlier.