Explosion At U.S. Embassy In Athens

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Explosion At U.S. Embassy In Athens

 

Greek Police Official Says Blast Was "Act Of Terrorism"

 

(CBS/AP) Authorities say streets around the United States Embassy compound in Athens have been cordoned off after an apparent explosion inside the embassy building.

 

State-run NET television in Greece, quoting eyewitness reports, say the noise was heard inside the main embassy building.

 

Officials in Greece say there are indications the apparent blast was caused by a rocket.

 

"This is an act of terrorism. We don't know where from. There was a shell that exploded in the toilets of the building... It was fired from street level," said Asimakis Golfis, chief of police for the Attica peninsula on which Athens is located.

 

Authorities searching for the source of the shell are scouring nearby apartment buildings and a hospital. The blast smashed glass in the front of the building, near the U.S. emblem of the embassy.

 

"I heard a loud bang I didn't realize what was going on," said Giorgos Yiannoulis, who runs a kiosk near the embassy.

 

The U.S. diplomatic compound is located on a main street in Athens and has in the past been the site of demonstrations and protests, at least one of them aimed at the Bush administration.

 

"The causes of the noise at the embassy is being investigated," police said in a statement.

 

Traffic came to a standstill across parts of central Athens, as police and emergency services scrambled to the embassy building.

 

U.S. Embassy spokeswoman Angela Brown tells CBS News that the ambassador was not in the building at the time of the incident, and there have been no injuries.

 

The Embassy has been under construction – the building of an addition – but there is no indication yet on whether the explosion had anything to do with that project.

 

In Washington, State Department spokesman Curtis Cooper issued a statement saying that an "explosion occurred at 6 a.m. local time" and the building will be closed for the day as a result.

 

Cooper had no information on whether there have been any claims of responsibility.

 

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