The mayor of Greece's second city Thessaloniki was hospitalised early Sunday after an assault by suspected far-right members at a rally, officials said. Yiannis Boutaris, 75, had to be escorted from the event on Saturday commemorating the massacre of Black Sea Greeks in Turkey during and after World War I when members of the crowd turned violent.
"They were hitting me everywhere. Kicks, punches, the lot," Boutaris, who was discharged from hospital on Sunday, told state agency ANA. "It was a despicable attack, but I am well." Police on Sunday said they had detained two people in connection to the assault. Footage from the event shows Boutaris initially being heckled. As he starts to leave, people start throwing objects at him and at one point he falls to the ground. Some of the attackers then struck his car, smashing the rear window before it sped off.