Thousands take part in new Greece protest over train crash

Thousands of people protested on Sunday against safety deficiencies in Greece's railway network nearly two weeks after dozens were killed in the country's deadliest train crash.

Thousands of people protested on Sunday against safety deficiencies in Greece's railway network nearly two weeks after dozens were killed in the country's deadliest train crash.

The demonstrators also demanded punishment for those responsible for the head-on collision between a passenger train and a freight train that killed 57 people Feb. 28. Police said that more than 8,000 people in Athens gathered outside Parliament to protest on Sunday.

The protesters later marched to the offices of privatized train operator Hellenic Train. The company, which has been owned by Italy's Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane since 2017, isn't responsible for the maintenance of the railway network. State-owned Hellenic Railways is in charge of upkeep.

Authorities shut down four subway stations on two lines running through central Athens because of the protest.

The rally was organized by civil servants, a pro-communist union and university students.

In Thessaloniki, Greece's second-largest city, about 5,000 people demonstrated, listened to speeches and shouted slogans, such as "we will be the voice for all the dead."

Sunday's rallies, which passed off without serious incident, weren't as well-attended as similar events earlier in the week, when more than 30,000 had turned out in Athens and more than 20,000 in Thessaloniki. Police said four people were detained in Athens.