16 Americans, 2 Others Hurt in Athens Blast

A bomb exploded today next to a bus carrying U.S. military personnel in the Athens port of Piraeus, and police said 18 people, including 16 Americans, were injured.

The blast occurred at 5:10 p.m. near the central market as the Greek military bus was heading to the Hellenikon Air Force Base near Athens, police at the scene said.

A police officer said the explosive device was placed on a stone wall beside a dry river bed and detonated by a 300-yard-long wire running across the river.

The U.S. Embassy said 16 Americans and the Greek driver of the bus were injured by the blast. It did not identify the injured.

An embassy official said 14 of the injured Americans were treated for minor injuries at Hellenikon Air Base hospital and released. The official said four of the injured were civilians.

The Greek driver of a car in front of the bus also was injured.

The bus had been en route from a Greek military base at Elefsis 13 miles west of Athens.

The blast blew in the windows of the bus, spraying the interior with glass, and sent the vehicle careening off the stone wall and into a tree.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the bombing.

In Washington, the State Department condemned the attack. “We deplore this kind of violence,” said spokesman Charles E. Redman. He said the State Department had no information about who was responsible for the attack.