Olympic crackdown under way as Greek terror trial begins

THE TRIAL of five alleged members of a Greek terrorist cell began yesterday under tight security as authorities pressed ahead with a security drive before the Olympics in August.

The four men and one woman are accused of being the leaders of the Revolutionary Popular Struggle, (known as the ELA), which is blamed for the murder of two Greek police officers, dozens of bombings and other attacks in the 1980s.

They also face charges of setting off 59 bombs, mostly to attack vehicles or facilities operated by the US military when it had a base in the Athens area. No one was killed in those attacks. If convicted, the five alleged ELA leaders face life sentences. The group was considered Greece's second worst terrorist threat after the 17 November organisation. In December a special anti- terrorism tribunal gave multiple life sentences to the leader, chief assassin and three other members of that group.

The two organisations were among the last European terrorist groups inspired by 1970s visions of Marxism, social revolution and armed struggle. The alleged ELA members are being tried by the special tribunal in the same bunker-like courtroom of an Athens maximum-security prison where the 17 November members were put on trial. The trial is being held without a jury and is expected to last three months.

One suspect, Christos Tsigaridas, 64, a civil engineer, told the court he was a member of ELA. The other four, including the mayor of a small Aegean Sea island, have denied all charges. "I have never stopped believing that what I did was right," Mr Tsigaridas told the court.

The ELA suspects were arrested in January 2003 as part of a police security sweep for the Olympics. The trials have been touted by Greek authorities as a sign of their determination to crack down on domestic terrorism before the Games. (AP)

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