Police use water cannon on rail disaster anniversary protesters in Athens

(28 Feb 2025)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:

ASSOCIATED PRESS
Athens - 28 February 2025
1. Wide of police using water cannons against protesters and explosions heard in the background
2. Zoom and pan of police using water cannons
3. Wide of protesters and explosions
4. Pan of police and protesters
5. Mid of police
6. Various wide of protesters
7. Wide of protester throwing object at police
8. Various wide of police using water cannon
STORYLINE:
Police in Athens used water cannon against protesters in Athens who hurled gasoline bombs and smashed-up paving stones during mass demonstrations on Friday to mark the second anniversary of a devastating train crash.

Authorities said at least 41 people were arrested and 20 received medical attention during the violence outside Parliament and through nearby streets.

Police used water cannon to clear crowds and fired volleys of tear gas and stun grenades.

Hundreds of thousands of people joined rallies across Greece to demand justice for the 57 people killed on Feb. 28, 2023, when a passenger train collided head-on with a freight train.

The protests have been fueled by public resentment against the conservative government’s perceived inaction.

Unions called a general strike in support of the mass mobilization led by the victims' relatives.

Flights and rail services were canceled, ferries halted and public transportation across the country was severely disrupted.

Private businesses and public services have also been affected, with many stores in Athens closed, leaving messages of solidarity for the victims’ families in front windows.

Demonstrations were taking place in more than 300 cities and towns in Greece and abroad.

Critics say that politicians should be held accountable for failures that led up to the collision, but so far only rail officials have been charged with any crimes.

The disaster in Tempe — the worst railway accident in Greece's history — left dozens injured and exposed deficiencies in transportation infrastructure.

The mountainous country is largely road-reliant and the nation’s railway system is centered around a single route between Athens and the second-largest city, Thessaloniki.

A long-awaited report on the investigation into the crash, released on Thursday, blamed human error, outdated infrastructure and major systemic failures for the head-on collision.

The aftermath was marked by scenes of chaos, with surviving passengers describing tumbling carriages, fires and smashed windows as they scrambled to escape.

It was followed by the task of victim recovery and identification as many bodies were severely burned or dismembered.

Funerals were held across numerous communities throughout Greece, many streamed or broadcast live, turning private grief into a shared national experience.

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