NEWS

Three Athens metro stations to close for November 17 rally

Three Athens metro stations to close for November 17 rally

Police on Thursday announced the closure of three metro stations on Friday afternoon as part of security measures being put in place for the commemoration of the bloody November 17, 1973, uprising by students of Athens Polytechnic that precipitated the fall of the 1967-74 military dictatorship.

Megaro Moussikis will be the first station to close, at 3 p.m., because of its proximity to the US Embassy. Evangelismos and Syntagma stations will follow at 5 p.m.

The annual rally is often marred by clashes between self-style anarchists and police, but there are concerns of more violence this year as around 70 anarchists, some from Albania and Central Europe, have occupied the historic building of Athens Polytechnic, now the National Technical University of Athens.

In a statement posted on an anti-establishment website on Wednesday, the occupiers called for an “uprising here and now” and said they would be holding a to discuss their plans “to clash with police forces.”

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