Bank of Greece Bombed Before Landmark Bond Sale

Greece is set to return to the international bond market today after four years of financial struggle, but not everyone is happy about it—especially not the suspected domestic terrorists who set off a large car bomb in front of the country's central bank hours before the bond issue. The huge blast early in central Athens this morning shattered windows at the bank and at buildings up to 700 feet away but didn't cause any injuries, reports the AP. Two warning calls were made 45 minutes before the explosion, which comes a day before German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who imposed tough conditions on the Greek bailout, is due to visit the country.

After six years of recession, public anger at austerity measures in Greece runs deep, with unemployment at 28% and incomes down around a third over the last four years, Reuters notes. Authorities, who believe a leftist or anarchist group is behind the bombing, say the bond issue issue is a sign that Greece is finally emerging from its debt crisis. "It is clear that the attackers are trying to set the agenda," a government spokesman says. "We will not allow the terrorists to succeed." (More car bomb stories.)