Athens: Greece suspended all overseas air shipments of mail and parcels for 48 hours on Wednesday following a wave of attacks by suspected leftist guerrillas on government targets in several west European countries.
Small bombs exploded at the Swiss and Russian embassies in Athens on Tuesday, a package with explosives was intercepted at the German chancellor's office and a Greek police source said Italian authorities were examining a suspect package found on a courier plane from Athens.
Another two suspect packages detonated by police at the cargo terminal of Athens airport on Tuesday evening contained explosives and were addressed to Europol and the European Court of Justice, police officials said.
"Following a recommendation by Greek police, Greek aviation authorities decided to suspend the shipment of mail and packages abroad for 48 hours, aiming to make checks," Greek police said in a statement.
Police had already arrested two Greeks, aged 22 and 24, on Monday in possession of two bombs including one addressed to French President Nicolas Sarkozy. The latest incidents took the total of actual or suspected bombs to 14 since Monday.
Police said on Monday that one of the two arrested men may be a member of the Fire Conspiracy Cells, who have staged several attacks on government targets over the past year.
Greeks have become used to gas canister and bomb attacks against public buildings and police stations in the last two years, as well as anti-capitalist urban guerrilla attacks down the decades.
The wave of bombs may be intended to galvanize an anti-government vote in Sunday's local elections.
Prime Minister George Papandreou's Socialists already fear a backlash against the radical tax hikes, pension freezes and cuts in spending and public sector wages they have imposed.
Dozen Arrests
The attackers also may want to demonstrate that they are still active after the arrests of more than a dozen suspected members of guerrilla groups this year.
Papandreou vowed to "be merciless to those who attempt in vain to rock social peace with terrorist acts and hurt our country's image internationally during a very difficult period."
The two arrested men were both charged with participating in a terrorist group and with illegal possession of explosives and weapons, a court official said.
No one was injured at the Swiss or Russian embassies, and Greek police said the bombs that had been found were mostly too small to kill anyone.
"When the external packaging was removed, the contents burst into flames," a Swiss Foreign Ministry spokesman said.
Other parcel bombs found on Tuesday included one outside parliament addressed to the Chilean embassy, one each at the Chilean and Bulgarian embassies, and one addressed to the German embassy, at the offices of a courier company.
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