‘Went to slaughter the woman’: Witness recalls knife attack near Athens’ Acropolis

In a shocking turn of events, two US tourists were injured in a knife attack near the historic site of the Acropolis in Greece’s Athens. He reportedly threatened other passers-by shortly before his alleged attack around 8 a.m. Despite the shocking attack incident, the site was not closed and remains operational as normal.

According to a report by the Associated Press, local authorities revealed that a 60-year-old Greek man allegedly stabbed a woman and a man near the entrance of the ancient monument and the nearby Acropolis Museum. The report suggests that the woman sustained minor injuries to her leg while the man suffered serious arm injuries.

Both victims were taken to a hospital by ambulance, where paramedics applied a tourniquet to one of them to control severe bleeding. Another local outlet, Ta Nea, reported that the man was trying to protect the woman when he was attacked. The authorities reportedly knew who the attacker was, and he was detained at the scene.

The report also states that the sexagenarian is a homeless Greek national and is currently being held in custody. One of the witnesses, while speaking with Ta Nea, said, “[The man] went to slaughter the woman; we heard screams; we saw her lying on the ground covered in blood.”

An Australian migrant who visited Acropolis with his daughter at the time recalled, “We were in line and waiting to get in. The doors didn’t open, and we heard voices. People scattered and we saw the one with a knife going towards a woman”

The expatriate further added, “Then we saw the woman down on the ground with blood on her back. We got scared and moved away, but when the police came we returned and continued on our way.”

He also mentioned that the Hellenic Police and the Emergency Medical Services cleared visitors from the crime scene after the incident. Meanwhile, the Associated Press states that the site was not closed and continued its operation as normal.

The news left internet users also quite shocked, who expressed their reaction on X. One of the many comments read, “A disturbing incident near one of Athens’ most iconic landmarks. Two tourists injured in a stabbing—hoping they make a full recovery and authorities quickly establish what happened.”

Another user said, “Many a time people have gone on holidays and Never Returned……or it’s one they’ll never forget.”

The Acropolis reportedly opens at 8 am with tourists lining up early to visit the ancient landmark.