Greek Police Arrest Two Pakistanis Planning Attack On Israelis In Athens: Report

Police busted a 'terror' network and said the suspects were planning attacks on Israelis in Athens.

Police in Greece claimed to have busted a "terrorist" network that was planning attacks in the country and arrested two suspects of Pakistani origin, AFP reported. Police said the Pakistanis, aged 27 and 29, were of Iranian origin and were planning attacks on Israelis in central Athens.

"After coordinated actions by the Greek police and the National Intelligence Service, a terrorist network was dismantled which, from abroad, was planning strikes against carefully selected targets on Greek territory," Greek police said in a statement.

According to a report in the Greek daily Kathimerini, the terrorists planned to attack with a gas cylinder explosive.

The operation was conducted by Greece's anti-terrorism police division and National Intelligence Service.

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Police said the suspects had chosen a target of "high symbolism" for the attack and were making final preparations for it, AP reported. 

A government official said one of the targets was a Jewish restaurant in central Athens.

"Their aim was not only to cause the loss of life of innocent citizens, but also to undermine the sense of security in the country, while hurting public institutions and threatening (Greece's) international relations," a police statement said, AP reported.

Public Order Minister Takis Theodorikakos in a tweet said authorities have uncovered members of a terrorist organisation involving foreign nationals and they have been taken to the public prosecutor.

"The operation demonstrates that the country’s security authorities maintain a high state of readiness for all Greeks and all visitors to our country," Theodorikakos tweeted.

Greece is just an hour away from Israel by plane and is a popular tourist destination among Israelis. In the past, Israel has repeatedly accused Iran and its proxies of planning attacks against Israeli targets in Greece.

However, this is not the first time that Pakistani nationals have been caught in an attempted attack on Jewish targets in the European region. In 2021, Pakistanis were arrested in Cyprus in an attack on an Israeli. In 2022, Pakistani nationals were also involved in an attempted attack on an Israeli in Istanbul.