26 wild horses were shot and killed on a remote countryside. 23 had died immediately while three succumbed to injuries later. The authorities were alerted to the killings after the horses were found dead by vacationers on the slopes of Mount Cyllene, 140 kilometers southwest of Athens. The motive for the killings remains unknown. The privately-owned horses were allowed to roam wild on the countryside and police are investigating as to whether there was a dispute with the horses’ owner that resulted in the attack.

Animal rights groups immediately responded to the killings with Greece’s Animal Welfare Association calling on Greece’s Radical Left Coalition (SYRIZA) government to take a tougher line on animal cruelty. Anastasia Bobolaki, the association’s chairman, told Associated Press that there is a bad attitude in the treatment of animals in Greece. “Our laws are outdated and those that exist are not enforced,” she said, pointing to thousands of animals poisoned each year.