Shots fired at German embassy in Athens

Police said at least two armed attackers were involved in the shooting, when at least 60 shots were fired in the air from a Kalashnikov rifle and four hit the metal gate of the high-security embassy, which sits on a busy street of a northern Athens suburb.

Police believe the attack was carried out by members of leftist guerrilla groups, although no-one has claimed responsibility.

German Ambassador Wolfgang Dold, who was at home at the time of the incident, said: “Whoever is responsible for this act, you will not succeed in disrupting the close and friendly relations of our two countries.”

Greek Foreign Minister Evangelos Venizelos said the attack was a “cowardly terrorist act” which targeted Greece’s image.

The residence was previously targeted in 1999, when members of the now disbanded extremist group November 17 fired a rocket-propelled grenade that hit its roof.

Anti-German mood

Anti-German sentiment has grown during Greece’s continuing economic crisis, as it struggles with record unemployment and falling living standards.

Germany is the biggest single contributor to Greece’s bailouts totalling 240 billion euros, which have saved the country from bankruptcy and kept it afloat since 2010. Some Greeks blame their troubles on Germany’s insistence on fiscal rigour in return for the bailouts.

Last year public sector workers pelted a German diplomat with water bottles and coffee in a protest over austerity measures. Groups opposing Greece’s bailout frequently protest outside the German embassy, and pictures lampooning German Chancellor Angel Merkel are commonplace in Athens.

Greece takes over the European Union presidency for six months from 1 January and will hope to show how far it has come since the worst of its financial crises.