Greek police destroy suspected bomb outside Athens ministry

Greek authorities have destroyed a time bomb placed overnight outside the Labor Ministry on a major thoroughfare in central Athens, after a warning telephone call was made to a newspaper, police said today.

No injuries or damage were reported.

A bomb disposal crew carried out three controlled explosions at about 4:30 am (0230 GMT) today to destroy the device, which was found in a backpack placed in a plastic container at the building's entrance.

Authorities were alerted following an anonymous call to a newspaper at about 1 am in which the caller said a bomb was to explode in 40 minutes.
 

A bomb squad arrived and cordoned off the area, but the device did not detonate.

Police said it was not immediately clear why the device did not explode. Anti-terrorism police were leading the investigation and forensic experts were examining the remnants of the backpack and its contents.

A number of small domestic extremist groups are active in Greece, usually carrying late-night attacks that rarely cause injuries.