Police, protesters clash at rail disaster rally in Athens
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ATHENS - Violent clashes broke out between police and protesters outside the Greek Parliament in Athens on Sunday as thousands attended a rally following the nation’s worst rail disaster
Some demonstrators set fire to rubbish bins and threw Molotov cocktails, while police responded by firing tear gas and stun grenades, clearing Syntagma Square of the protesters within a few minutes.
Police said 12,000 people had gathered by the large esplanade in front of the Parliament to demand accountability for Tuesday’s head-on collision near the central city of Larissa that has sparked widespread outrage.
They released hundreds of black balloons into the sky in memory of the dead, with some holding signs reading “Down with killer governments”.
Train and metro services have been paralysed by strike action.
The country’s Prime Minister had asked for forgiveness from the families of the 57 dead ahead of the rally.
“As prime minister, I owe it to everyone, but especially to the victims’ relatives, (to ask for) forgiveness,” Mr Kyriakos Mitsotakis wrote in a message addressed to the nation.
The crash between passenger and freight trains has sparked widespread outrage across Greece.
“For the Greece of 2023, two trains heading in different directions cannot run on the same line and no one notice,” Mr Mitsotakis said in the message posted on his Facebook page.
The station master implicated in the disaster,
Hellenic Train, the rail company that has become the focus of some of the anger expressed in the wake of the crash, released a statement late on Saturday defending its actions.
One legal source has said that investigators are looking at the possibility of bringing charges against senior members of the company.
Over the last few days, rail union officials have insisted they warned the company about the safety issues on the line. Hard questions are also being asked of the government over its failure to pursue rail safety reforms.
Mr Mitsotakis said that if there had been a remote system in place throughout the rail network, “it would have been, in practice, impossible for the accident to happen”.
Greece would soon announce action, he said, adding that Athens would seek expertise from the European Commission and other countries on improving rail safety. AFP, REUTERS
