State Department Goes After Domestic Greek Terrorists

The State Department announced today that it’s designated two Greeks who are members of domestic rebel groups as terrorists.

Christodoulos Xiros and Nikolaos Maziotis were given their terrorist designations under Executive Order 13224, which “targets terrorists and those providing support to terrorists or acts of terrorism.”

“As a result of these designations, all property subject to U.S. jurisdiction in which Xiros and Maziotis have any interest is blocked and any assets they may have under U.S. jurisdiction are frozen. U.S. persons are generally prohibited from engaging in any transactions with Xiros and Maziotis, or to their benefit,” the State Department said.

Until his 2002 arrest, Xiros was a chief assassins of 17 November, a domestic Greek terrorist group that had staged attacks since the 1970s.

“After his escape, he publicized a manifesto focusing on his discontent with the Greek government. Xiros was re-arrested by Greek police in January 2015 while planning to carry out armed assaults in Greece, possibly with the intent to free other prisoners. At the time of his arrest, Xiros was likely coordinating with members of Conspiracy of Fire Nuclei, a group designated by the State Department under E.O. 13224 in 2011,” the State Department release continued.

Nikolaos Maziotis leads the Greek terrorist organization Revolutionary Struggle.

“He was arrested with six other alleged members of Revolutionary Struggle in 2010, but went missing in the middle of his trial. In April 2014, under the leadership of Maziotis, Revolutionary Struggle claimed responsibility for a bomb blast in central Athens outside the branch offices of the Greek central bank. On July 16, 2014, Maziotis was re-arrested by Greek police after a shootout in Athens’ central tourist district, which left four people wounded. Revolutionary Struggle was designated a foreign terrorist organization by the U.S. Department of State on May 18, 2009 and is most well-known for a rocket-propelled grenade attack on the U.S. Embassy in Athens in 2007.”

The State Department, in conjunction with the Justice and Treasury departments, vowed to “take such actions against terrorists and terrorist groups in Greece and elsewhere.”