A strong bomb explosion targets a Greek prison guard’s home and wounds two

Greek police experts search for evidence after a bomb explosion in Thessaloniki on May 3, 2025.
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Updated 26 July 2025
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A strong bomb explosion targets a Greek prison guard’s home and wounds two

  • The guard, named Konstantinos Varsamis on the association’s website, was left unharmed
  • The explosives were placed outside his apartment building’s front door in Sykies

THESSALONIKI: A bomb explosion targeted the home of the president of the Greek association of prison guards early Saturday morning in the country’s north.

The guard, named Konstantinos Varsamis on the association’s website, was left unharmed after about 3 kilograms (about 6.6 pounds) of explosives went off at 2:10 a.m. local time, police said.

The explosives were placed outside his apartment building’s front door in Sykies, a suburb in the northern city of Thessaloniki, where he lives on the first floor, according to authorities. The blast damaged three apartment buildings, shattering their windows and collapsing a shared wall, according to an Associated Press reporter on site.

“I woke up because of the very loud bang of the explosion,” Tzetno Kelo, 52, who lives in an adjacent apartment building, said. “Shattered glass from a window fell on my bed and I was covered in blood.” He was treated at a hospital before being discharged

Police said a witness saw a man walking in the densely built street shortly before the explosion.

Varsamis has worked for many years at Diavata prison, west of Thessaloniki, known for housing many criminal gang members as well as convicted terrorists.

Two police officers said they are focusing their efforts on criminal gangs rather than terror groups. Both spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not supposed to comment on an ongoing investigation. The police have already deposed Varsamis, they said.

The police’s Organized Crime Unit is leading the investigation.


Ukraine says received 1,003 bodies from Russia

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Ukraine says received 1,003 bodies from Russia

KYIV: Kyiv said on Friday that it had received from Russia more than 1,000 remains of people that Moscow said were Ukrainian soldiers killed fighting the Kremlin’s army.
The exchange of prisoners of war and the remains of killed soldiers is one of the few remaining areas of cooperation between Kyiv and Moscow, which invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
“Today, repatriation activities took place. 1,003 bodies, which the Russian side claims belong to Ukrainian servicemen, have been returned to Ukraine,” Kyiv’s Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, said in a statement on social media.
Kremlin aide Vladimir Medinsky confirmed an exchange between Moscow and Kyiv had taken place, writing on Telegram that the Russian side had received the remains of 26 killed Russian soldiers.
Medinsky said the exchange was made possible as part of agreements struck between Ukrainian and Russian delegations in Istanbul earlier this year.
Tens of thousands of soldiers have been killed on both sides since Russia invaded, though neither side regularly publishes data on their own casualties.