Thousands protest in Athens after Greece’s deadly train collision
Clashes erupted briefly between police and a gaggle of demonstrators in central Athens on Sunday on the fringes of a protest by 1000’s of scholars and railway staff over Greece’s deadliest train crash in residing reminiscence.
A small group of protesters hurled gasoline bombs at police, who responded with tear gasoline and hand grenades, earlier than dispersing to close by streets.
No less than 57 folks have been killed and dozens have been injured on Tuesday when a passenger train with greater than 350 folks on board collided with a freight train on the identical monitor in central Greece.
After protests over the previous three days throughout the nation, some 10,000 college students, railway staff and teams affiliated with leftist events gathered in an Athens sq. on Sunday to precise sympathy for the lives misplaced and to demand higher security requirements on the rail community.
Protesters shout at police firing tear gasoline whereas holding a banner studying ‘Murderers’ throughout Sunday’s demonstration in Athens. (Louisa Gouliamaki/AFP/Getty Photos)
“That crime will not be forgotten,” protesters shouted as they launched black balloons into the sky. A placard learn: “Their insurance policies value human lives.”
The train, travelling from Athens to the northern metropolis of Thessaloniki, was full of college college students returning after an extended vacation weekend. The catastrophe has triggered an outpouring of anger, in addition to a pointy concentrate on security requirements.
Protesters conflict with police firing tear gasoline throughout an illustration in Athens on Sunday, held in response to a deadly train accident late on Feb. 28 close to town of Larissa, Greece. (Louisa Gouliamaki/AFP/Getty Photos)
A petroleum bomb explodes subsequent to riot police throughout clashes in Athens on Sunday. (Yorgos Karahalis/The Related Press)
Railway staff, who additionally misplaced colleagues in the accident, have staged rotating walkouts since Wednesday to denounce cost-cutting and under-investment in the rail infrastructure, a legacy of Greece’s debilitating debt disaster from 2010 to 2018.
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ authorities has blamed human error for the crash. Nonetheless, Mitsotakis stated on Sunday that human error shouldn’t deflect from obligations for a long-suffering railway community.
PM guarantees quick investigation
“As prime minister, I owe everybody, however most of all of the kinfolk of the victims, an apology,” he wrote on Fb. “Justice will very quick examine the tragedy and decide liabilities.”
A station grasp in the close by metropolis of Larissa who was on obligation on the time of the crash was charged this week with endangering lives and disrupting public transport.
The station grasp, who can’t be named underneath Greek regulation, appeared earlier than a Justice of the Peace on Sunday after his lawyer requested additional time on Saturday to answer the fees following new data in regards to the case. These proceedings have been ongoing.
Railway staff’ unions say security methods all through the rail community have been poor for years as a distant surveillance and signalling system has not been delivered on time. They’ve referred to as on the federal government to supply a timetable for the implementation of security protocols.
Individuals collect throughout a protest outdoors the Greek parliament in Athens on Sunday. They launched black balloons to honour the victims of final Tuesday evening’s deadly train crash in central Greece. (Aggelos Barai/The Related Press)
Mitsotakis stated on Sunday that if there had been a distant system in place all through the rail community “it will have been, in follow, inconceivable for the accident to occur.”
Greece would quickly announce motion, he stated, including that Athens would search experience from the European Fee and different nations on bettering rail security.
WATCH | Deadly Greek train catastrophe blamed on human error: 
Deadly Greek train catastrophe blamed on human error
Officers in Greece say human error is accountable for a train crash Tuesday evening that killed not less than 36 folks and injured dozens extra, the nation’s deadliest rail crash in residing reminiscence. Police have arrested a stationmaster and the nation’s transport minister has resigned in the wake of the crash.
