Post date: Jun 11, 2012 12:7:58 PM
ATHENS, GREECE (JUNE 11, 2012) (REUTERS) - The spokesman for Greece's far-right Golden Dawn party arrived at a magistrate's office in Athens on Monday (June 11) to file lawsuits against two female politicians he assaulted live on television.
The spokesman for Greece's far-right Golden Dawn party goes to court to file lawsuits against two politicians he attacked on a live television show.
Ilias Kasidiaris caused outrage when he slapped Communist Party deputy, Liana Kanelli, three times and threw water at Rena Dourou of the leftist SYRIZA party when a heated argument erupted during a live TV election debate on Thursday.
Kasidiaris said he would sue the two women for unprovoked defamation, saying Kanelli hit him first when she threw a stack of papers in his face. He said he was also suing the television station for illegally holding him after the incident.
"I am coming to the prosecutor today to file a lawsuit against Ms. Kanelli and against Ms. Dourou also, for unprovoked defamation, and also against Antenna TV for my illegal retention," he said as he entered the courthouse.
Kasidiaris said he had been set up during the programme in order to provoke him. He is now is wanted by police on a charge of dangerous bodily harm.
Kasidiaris, who was elected to parliament in May despite a previous assault charge which he denies, faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in jail if convicted.
Golden Dawn, a far-right, anti-immigrant party whose symbol resembles a Nazi swastika, won seven percent of the vote in an inconclusive May election and entered parliament for the first time, pledging to stand up for Greeks suffering in the crisis.
However, the party's image has been severely dented by continuous replays of footage of the 31-year-old Kasidiaris, a former army commando, striking the middle-aged Communist deputy Liana Kanelli.