Highlights
-EA seeks to bring down the Greek political establishment
-Communiqués condemn police brutality, Greek alliances to United States
-EA will look to capitalize on ongoing unrest and commit attacks on police in the near-term
For nearly 25 years, a radical leftist Greek terror group named Revolutionary Organization 17 November (17 November or N17) waged a series of deadly attacks that killed 23 people including British and American diplomats. Before the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, however, the group’s reign in terror began to fade. In 2002, Greek police coordinated a series of arrests targeting high-ranking members of N17. By 2004, a Greek court had convicted fifteen members for various crimes, including homicide, dealing a devastating blow to the group’s hierarchy and operational capacity.
Coincidently around the time of N17’s trial, a previously unknown radical leftist group, Revolutionary Struggle (Epanastatikos Aghonas or EA), claimed responsibility for a dual bomb attack on a courthouse in Athens that injured one police officer . Since 2003, the group has carried out a militant anti-capitalist agenda with series of small-scale attacks bombings and shootings against the Greek government and police. The group’s latest claim of responsibility included the January 5, 2009 shooting of a Greek police officer, the December 23 shooting of a riot police van and a failed bomb attack on Shell’s headquarters in Athens (Terrorist Attacks).
EA’s strikingly similar objectives to that of the now disbanded N17 suggests that former N17 members may be operating under the banner of EA. This means the dangerous N17 militant ideals that originated in the 1970s and seemingly went dormant with the group’s disbandment in 2004, appear to be on the brink of taking root in a country that has already sustained more than a billion dollars in damages since December 2008 from militant and anti-government unrest.
EA’s pledge to continue its violent campaign is a major concern for Greek authorities as the country is weathering its worst civil unrest in decades. We anticipate that as violent unrest persists in Athens in the near-term, EA will be more than likely to target police to capitalize on a heightened level of international media reporting on the country’s deteriorating political stability.
Objective Shift Seen in Recent Communiqués
EA’s ideological goals share many similarities to that of N17. EA hopes to launch an anti-capitalist revolution against the Greek middle and upper classes and it opposes any alliance with the United States, both economic and military. For example, EA sent a proclamation to the weekly newspaper, To Pontiki, claiming responsibility for two 2004 attacks including the bombing of the labor ministry in Athens and an attack against buses carrying police. According to the group, the attacks were a “reply” to the “Greek state’s neo-liberal plans for labor relations…and the bandit-like raid against the working class weak, being conducted today by the economic and political elite of the land.” (Source)
In 2006, EA also claimed responsibility for an attempted assassination of Greek Culture Minister and former public order minister, George Voulgarakis. According to the group, Voulgarakis was targeted as he helped the Greek state upgrade its domestic security leading up to the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. According to a statement from the group, Voulgarakis was targeted for his role in committing “crimes against the peoples, against the people’s rights and freedoms, such as telephone tapings and the abductions of Pakistani immigrant workers.” (Source)
While EA’s ideology is shaped around an anti-Greek government agenda, recent communiqués have suggested that international issues such as military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, rather than domestic and political class and societal disputes, are driving the group’s agenda. This shift is highlighted in the group’s claim of responsibility for the January 2007 rocket-propelled grenade attack on the United States Embassy in Athens . In a five-page proclamation sent to the weekly newspaper, To Pontiki, the group claims the hit on the embassy was an “intervention that spotlighted the subjugation of the Greek State to US policy”. Further, the group states:
“It is our own response to the war which the American murderers and their stooges are carrying out in Iraq and Afghanistan, the bombing of Somalia, the new wars they will ignite in order to impose the New World Order. It is a response to their policy on Palestine and Lebanon, a policy that aims at the elimination of all resistance. It is a response for the prisoners of Guantanamo, for all the prisoners-hostages of the ‘anti-terrorism’ war. Finally, it is also a greeting to all those fighting against the establishment of a world neo-class regime, from Iraq, Lebanon, Palestine and Nigeria to Latin America and Europe” (Source).
Outlook
Despite this shift seen in communiqués in recent years, EA’s latest statement of responsibility for the two attacks on police in Athens reverts back to its original agenda of destabilizing the Greek political establishment. In its latest 9,000-word proclamation titled “Bullets against Bullets”, EA warns it “could literally crush the police security, leaving unguarded the political and economic powers that be.” (Source) Furthermore, the group states, “We may not have the training or ammunition that cops do, but we are determined and armed with faith that an armed confrontation with the establishment and its henchmen is not only desired but attainable.” (Source)
Although protests around the country have lessened in scope recently, violent demonstrations in Athens are occurring with regularity. Just last weekend, hundreds of anarchist protesters fought with police in Athens and damaged several stores during a several hour clash on January 24, 2009. This type of ongoing volatility will prove beneficial for EA operations. Furthermore, Greek government officials have warned that tens of thousands of jobs could be cut in the coming months, which could potentially spark further unrest across the country. As Greek authorities attempt to contain ongoing violent demonstrations by youth groups and anarchists in the near-term, EA will likely seek to capitalize on heightened media coverage by committing additional attacks in the near-term.
