US embassy cable - 88ATHENS19586

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ATHENS 19586 
 
TERREP 
 
S/CT FOR WHARTON 
 
E.O. 12356:  N/A 
TAGS:  PTER, GR 
SUBJECT:  GREECE:  1988 ANNUAL TERRORISM REPORT 
 
REF:  STATE 357278 
 
 
1.  FOLLOWING IS THE EMBASSY'S SUBMISSION FOR THE 
DEPARTMENT'S UNCLASSIFIED ANNUAL REPORT TO THE 
CONGRESS ON TERRORISM IN 1988. 
 
2.  1988 WAS A VERY BAD YEAR FOR COMBATTING 
TERRORISM IN GREECE.  DOMESTIC AND FOREIGN 
TERRORIST ORGANIZATIONS INCREASED THEIR ACTIVITIES 
IN GREECE DURING THE YEAR, USING MORE LETHAL MEANS 
AGAINST AN EXPANDING ARRAY OF TARGETS.  AMERICAN 
OFFICIALS WERE AT PARTICULAR HAZARD AND ONE U.S. 
EMBASSY OFFICER WAS KILLED.  THERE WERE NO 
SIGNIFICANT COUNTER-TERRORIST SUCCESSES ACHIEVED 
BY THE GREEK GOVERNMENT.  IN CONTRAST, GREEK 
JUSTICE MINISTERS TWICE OVERTURNED DECISIONS OF 
GREEK COURTS AND PERMITTED TERRORISTS WANTED IN 
ITALY TO GO FREE.  THE GREEK GOVERNMENT MAINTAINS 
ITS RHETORICAL POSITION AGAINST TERRORISM, BUT THE 
RHETORIC HAS NOT BEEN MATCHED BY DEEDS. 
 
3.  A NUMBER OF DOMESTIC TERRORIST GROUPS OPERATED 
WITH IMPUNITY IN GREECE IN 1988, CARRYING OUT 
REPEATED BOMBINGS OF PUBLIC AND PRIVATE 
FACILITIES.  HOWEVER, THE MOST DANGEROUS AND 
DEADLY TERRORIST ORGANIZATION REMAINS "NOVEMBER 
17", WHICH CONTINUED ITS THIRTEEN-YEAR CAMPAIGN OF 
MURDEROUS ATTACKS WHICH HAVE OFTEN BEEN AIMED AT 
U.S. OFFICIALS.  "NOVEMBER 17" FAILED IN A JANUARY 
ATTEMPT TO KILL U.S. DRUG ENFORCEMENT AGENCY 
OFFICIAL GEORGE CARROS WITH A BOMB, BUT 
UNFORTUNATELY SUCCEEDED ON JUNE 28 IN 
ASSASSINATING THE U.S. EMBASSY DEFENSE ATTACHE, 
NAVY CAPTAIN WILLIAM NORDEEN, WITH A BOMB OF GREAT 
EXPLOSIVE POWER.  ON AUGUST 14, "NOVEMBER 17" 
DEMONSTRATED ITS OPEN CONTEMPT FOR GOVERNMENTAL 
AUTHORITY BY SEIZING A POLICE STATION IN SUBURBAN 
ATHENS, BRIEFLY DETAINING ITS STAFF AND STEALING A 
STORE OF WEAPONS AND OTHER EQUIPMENT.  IN ITS 
FREQUENT WRITTEN PROCLAMATIONS, "NOVEMBER 17" HAS 
MANIFESTED A HIGHLY ETHNOCENTRIC AND RADICAL 
POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY WHICH INCLUDES AMONG ITS 
PERCEIVED DEMONS THE UNITED STATES, THE EUROPEAN 
COMMUNITY, NATO, THE GREEK GOVERNMENT, ALL GREEK 
POLITICAL PARTIES, A MARKET ECONOMY AND ALMOST ALL 
FACETS OF PARLIAMENTARY DEMOCRACY.  WHILE LITTLE 
OF SUBSTANCE IS KNOWN ABOUT THE INTERNAL WORKINGS 
OF "NOVEMBER 17", IT HAS CONSISTENTLY DEMONSTRATED 
SEVERAL IMPORTANT QUALITIES:  RIGID INTERNAL 
SECURITY, A COMMITMENT TO SELF-PRESERVATION, 
METHODICAL PREPARATION AND EXECUTION OF ATTACKS, 
AND A PREFERENCE FOR HOMICIDAL OPERATIONS.  OVER 
THE PAST TWO YEARS IT HAS ALSO SHOWN A WILLINGNESS 
AND ABILITY TO EXPAND SHARPLY THE NUMBER OF ITS 
ATTACKS WHILE EMPLOYING AN EXPANDED RANGE OF 
TECHNIQUES OF GREATLY ENHANCED LETHALITY.  IN 
THIRTEEN YEARS OF OPERATION, NO MEMBER OF 
"NOVEMBER 17" HAS EVER BEEN PUBLICLY IDENTIFIED, 
APPREHENDED OR KILLED. 
 
4.  ANY ILLUSIONS THAT GREECE COULD REMAIN 
UNSCARRED BY THE SCOURGE OF INTERNATIONAL 
TERRORISM SHOULD HAVE BEEN DISPELLED IN 1988. 
FOREIGN TERRORISTS DEMONSTRATED THEIR ABILITY AND 
INTENT TO USE GREECE AS A BATTLEFIELD AND TO MAKE 
IT A VICTIM AS THEY SAW FIT.  IN APRIL, A 
PROMINENT LEADER OF THE ARMENIAN SECRET ARMY FOR 
THE LIBERATION OF ARMENIA ("ASALA") RESIDENT IN 
GREECE, HAGOP HAGOPIAN, WAS ASSASSINATED IN FRONT 
OF HIS HOUSE IN ATHENS IN AN APPARENT INTERNAL 
"ASALA" DISPUTE.  IN AN EVENT WHICH ATTRACTED THE 
ATTENTION OF THE WORLD JULY 11, GUNMEN USED 
MACHINE GUNS AND GRENADES TO CONDUCT A MASSACRE OF 
PASSENGERS ABOARD THE DAY EXCURSION BOAT "CITY OF 
POROS" IN THE SARONIC GULF NEAR ATHENS.  NINE 
PASSENGERS WERE KILLED AND NEARLY ONE HUNDRED 
INJURED.  ONLY HOURS BEFORE THE ATTACK, AN 
AUTOMOBILE PACKED WITH EXPLOSIVES BLEW UP AT A 
MARINA IN PIRAEUS, THE PORT OF ATHENS, KILLING ITS 
OCCUPANTS.  WHILE NO ORGANIZATION HAS CLAIMED 
RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE TWO EVENTS, WHICH WERE 
ALMOST CERTAINLY CONNECTED, CONSIDERABLE EVIDENCE 
POINTS TO THE ABU NIDAL ORGANIZATION.  ALTHOUGH 
THE PURPOSE OF THE ATTACK ON THE "CITY OF POROS" 
REMAINS A MATTER OF SPECULATION, IT SEEMS LIKELY 
THAT A MUCH LARGER TERRORIST OPERATION WAS IN 
PREPARATION AND WENT WRONG.  THERE HAVE BEEN NO 
ARRESTS IN CONNECTION WITH THESE EVENTS. 
 
5.  THE GREEK GOVERNMENT HAS REPEATEDLY STATED ITS 
"PRINCIPLED" POSITION IN OPPOSITION TO TERRORISM 
OF ALL FORMS.  THESE STATEMENTS HAVE NOT SO FAR 
BEEN MATCHED BY SUBSTANTIVE COUNTER-TERRORIST 
ACHIEVEMENTS.  THE GOVERNMENT HAS REPORTEDLY 
INCREASED THE RESOURCES AND PRIORITY IT ASSIGNS TO 
COMBATTING TERRORISM, GREEK SHIPOWNERS HAVE BEEN 
IN THE FOREFRONT INTERNATIONALLY IN PROPOSING AND 
IMPLEMENTING IMPROVED SECURITY MEASURES ON 
PASSENGER VESSELS, AND THE U.S. EMBASSY RECEIVED 
SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVED COOPERATION FROM GREEK 
AUTHORITIES IN THE AFTERMATH OF THE KILLING OF 
CAPTAIN NORDEEN.  HOWEVER, IN 1988 THERE WAS ONLY 
ONE ARREST (CITED BELOW), NO CONVICTIONS AND NO 
EXTRADITIONS OF SUSPECTED TERRORISTS IN GREECE. 
INDEED, THE CONTRARY IS THE CASE.  IN NOVEMBER AN 
ATHENS COURT DISMISSED CHARGES AGAINST TWO 
SUSPECTED MEMBERS OF THE "ANTI-STATE STRUGGLE" 
ORGANIZATION FOR LACK OF EVIDENCE. 
 
6.  MUCH MORE SERIOUSLY, GREEK JUSTICE MINISTERS 
TWICE DURING THE YEAR OVERTURNED RULINGS BY GREEK 
COURTS (INCLUDING THE SUPREME COURT) WHICH FAVORED 
EXTRADITIONS OF PERSONS WANTED IN ITALY FOR 
TERRORIST OFFENSES.  IN FEBRUARY THEN JUSTICE 
MINISTER KOUTSOYIORGAS EXERCISED HIS AUTHORITY TO 
REFUSE THE EXTRADITION OF MAURIZIO FOLINI, WANTED 
IN ITALY FOR PARTICIPATION IN THE "RED BRIGADES", 
AND PERMITTED HIM TO GO FREE.  IN DECEMBER JUSTICE 
MINISTER ROTIS REFUSED EXTRADITION TO ITALY OF 
PALESTINIAN ABDEL OZAMA AL-ZUMAR, WANTED FOR HIS 
ROLE IN THE 1982 FATAL BOMBING OF A ROME SYNAGOGUE 
BY THE ABU NIDAL ORGANIZATION, AND ALLOWED HIM TO 
DEPART FOR LIBYA.  IN BOTH CASES THE JUSTICE 
MINISTERS CITED THE SUPPOSEDLY "POLITICAL" 
CHARACTER OF THE CRIMES AS THE BASIS FOR 
OVERRULING THE GREEK JUDICIARY.  MINISTER ROTIS 
WENT SO FAR AS TO PUBLICLY REFER TO AL-ZUMAR'S 
CRIME AS "AN ACT ON BEHALF OF FREEDOM" WHICH HE 
COMPARED TO THE WARTIME RESISTANCE IN GREECE TO 
THE NAZI OCCUPATION. 
 
7.  THE SINGLE SUCCESS IN COUNTER-TERRORISM IN 
GREECE DURING 1988 WAS THE DETENTION ON MAY 30 OF 
PALESTINIAN MOHAMMED RASHID, WANTED IN THE UNITED 
STATES FOR THE 1982 BOMBING OF A PAN AMERICAN 
AIRLINER OVER THE PACIFIC IN WHICH A FOURTEEN-YEAR 
OLD JAPANESE BOY WAS KILLED.  ON OCTOBER 10 AN 
ATHENS COURT VOTED TWO-TO-ONE IN FAVOR OF THE U.S. 
REQUEST FOR THE EXTRADITION OF RASHID.  AT YEAR'S 
END, THE CASE IS BEFORE THE GREEK SUPREME COURT 
FOR CONFIRMATION OF THE DECISION OF THE LOWER 
COURT.  UNDER THE GREEK CONSTITUTION AND THE TERMS 
OF THE BILATERAL EXTRADITION TREATY, THE FINAL 
DECISION ON EXTRADITION WILL LIE WITH THE GREEK 
GOVERNMENT IN THE PERSON OF THE MINISTER OF 
JUSTICE.  THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT HAS MADE NO 
SECRET OF THE GREAT SIGNIFICANCE IT ATTACHES TO 
THE SUCCESSFUL EXTRADITION OF RASHID AND THE 
IMPORTANT PRECEDENT WHICH WOULD BE ESTABLISHED BY 
BRINGING HIM TO JUSTICE. 
 
8.  GREECE MAINTAINS DIPLOMATIC TIES WITH THE 
PALESTINE LIBERATION ORGANIZATION (PLO) AND 
PERMITS A PLO OFFICE TO OPERATE IN ATHENS. 
HOWEVER, GREECE HAS NOT RECOGNIZED THE 
RECENTLY-DECLARED "PALESTINIAN STATE". 
 
9.  DURING THE SECOND HALF OF 1988 IN CONNECTION 
WITH ITS ROLE AS ROTATING PRESIDENT OF THE 
EUROPEAN COMMUNITY, GREECE CHAIRED THE ACTIVITIES 
OF THE TREVI GROUP, A COORDINATING BODY OF LAW 
ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS OF EC MEMBERS TO WHICH OTHER 
COUNTRIES, INCLUDING THE U.S., HAVE OBSERVER 
STATUS.  GREECE THEREFORE HOSTED THE SEMI-ANNUAL 
MINISTERIAL MEETING OF THE TREVI GROUP IN ATHENS 
DECEMBER 8-9.  THIS EVENT WAS UNFORTUNATELY 
OVERSHADOWED BY THE RELEASE OF AL-ZUMAR ON THE EVE 
OF THE MEETING. 
 
KEELEY