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G8 death sparked bomb protest
GENOA, Italy -- A little-known group calling itself "July 20th" has claimed responsibility for two bombs that detonated in Genoa saying it was in response to the death of a protester during an anti-globalisation demonstration. The group made its claim on Tuesday in a series of letters to police and local newspapers. Monday's attack was "a first response against the material executioners of Carlo Giuliani's assassination," the letter said, The Associated Press reported. AP added that "July 20th" were also protesting against "the torture and systematic violence perpetuated in the streets and police barracks in a vain attempt to repress the people's response against the G-8 summit." Giuliani was shot on July 20, 2001 while demonstrating against the G8 summit which was being held in Genoa. Italian news agencies quoted Genoa's police chief, Oscar Fioriolli, as saying the group's claim appeared credible. The homemade devices exploded outside Genoa police headquarters in the early hours of Monday morning. The blasts smashed shutters and windows up to the fifth floor of the building, but caused no injuries, police said.
One device exploded shortly before 4 a.m. (0300 GMT) in a public garden near the headquarters. The other bomb went off nearby 10 minutes later, just as police were arriving to investigate the first explosion, police said. It is believed the group derives its name from the date in 2001 when Giuliani was shot dead by police. As well as Giuliani's death, tensions during the summit were aggravated when police raided a school where many of the demonstrators were sleeping. Last week, prosecutors investigating the killing of Giuliani, 23, ruled that the officer who fired the fatal bullet had acted in self-defence and should not be charged. The controversial decision coincided with a magistrate ordering nine anti-globalisation activists be held in jail while investigations continue into their alleged role in the riots. In July this year, on the first anniversary of his death, tens of thousands of people gathered in the city in honour of Giuliani. (Full story) Copies of the "July 20th" letter were sent from postboxes close to Genoa's main Brignole station, said Antonio Di Rosa, the editor-in-chief of local daily Il Secolo XIX. The letters described what the group said were the contents of the explosive devices -- dynamite in a metal container, ball bearings, bolts, black powder.
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