Suspect held for attack on ND MP as parties row

Police on Friday arrested one suspect in connection with an attack on New Democracy MP Giorgos Koumoutsakos outside Parliament on Thursday evening and were seeking another four people, including a woman, who were captured on video footage of the incident.

The police did not provide any details about the arrested suspect but said that he was positively identified by participants in a rally by Pontic Greeks on Thursday night which was hijacked by members of neo-Nazi Golden Dawn.

Police were seeking the four additional suspects late on Friday. Two of the four are said to have criminal records and have been linked to assaults on immigrants. All are said to reside in Menidi, northern Athens.

Another 20 people were briefly detained by police on Friday in connection with the assault on Koumoutsakos, who was punched and shoved on the sidelines of the rally, but were subsequently released.

The MP brought legal action against all parties involved in the incident and urged authorities to apprehend them all “as every citizen of this country would demand.”

Meanwhile the Athens public prosecutor’s office ordered a probe into the exact circumstances of the attack as a war of words between the government and ND over the incident continued.

Government spokeswoman Olga Gerovasili accused ND of pandering to far-right populism after the conservative party accused Education Minister Nikos Filis of essentially provoking the attack on Koumoutsakos through controversial comments about Pontic Greeks earlier this week.