Greek PM Alexis Tsipras has made some serious accusations against major opposition party New Democracy (ND) in his speech during the government cabinet meeting, Monday, saying a portion of ND at the highest echelons was enabling and condoning extreme and hateful behaviours such as the attacks on Saturday in Thessaloniki against the city’s Mayor Yiannis Boutaris.

“They will be treated with the utmost harshness, mobilising all the mechanisms of the Republic”, the prime minister said during his opening statement to his cabinet.
However, the Prime Minister went on to wonder:“But who applauded the attack on Yannis Boutaris? Who prepared it with violent verbal attacks against him? Who constantly unleashes every day, extreme accusations of traitors, and Greeks with a lesser national conscience? Who has proclaimed themselves the custodian of the nation, and target those who think and act differently? Who, in a nutshell, in the most formal way, pave the way for violence? We all know, who. And they are not isolated cases – some Mayor, or ex-Prefect of central Macedonia from ND”. Mr Tsipras was referring to a statement made by Mayor of Argos Dimitris Kabosos who had said that it was the “fate of traitors” commenting on the attack against Boutaris.

“There is a concrete, shadowy, and extreme part of the main opposition. It finds expression in the highest organs. I do not want to say anything more”, the prime minister commented, giving a political dimension to the criminal assault against the mayor of Thessaloniki by thugs and criminals on Saturday.