| Fifteen members of a Greek terrorist group which carried out a series of murders have been convicted. The leader of the November 17 terrorist cell and several followers carried out a nearly 30-year spree of killings and violence. A nine-month trial ended with guilty verdicts for participation in the group against Alexandros Giotopoulos, the alleged ringleader. Others convicted included the group’s hit man, Dimitris Koufodinas. Sentencing is expected later this week. November 17 was blamed for dozens of armed robberies, hundreds of bombings and 23 killings since 1975. The victims include four American envoys, two Turkish diplomats and prominent Greek political and business figures. The group took its name from the date of a bloody 1973 student uprising against the military dictatorship that ruled Greece from 1967 to 1974. |