ATHENS — A counter-terrorist operation has been underway since late Wednesday in Athens, after police discovered the location of a safehouse filled with explosives in the Athens district of Koukaki.

According to a police announcement, three local residents have been arrested on charges of possessing weapons and explosives – two men aged 38 and 42 years old, respectively, and a 36-year-old woman.

A raid on Wednesday on a warehouse on Anastassiou Zini Street revealed a quantity of explosives sufficient for the construction of bombs, police sources said. The warehouse was rented by one of the two suspects, who has been accused of being an accomplice of the notorious criminal Vassilis Paleokostas.

The second man, also known to police, and the woman were arrested In a raid on a house where police also found two guns. Both men are known to have links to anti-establishment circles.

A search in four houses is currently underway and there will be a detailed briefing after the end of the operation. Police estimate that the case is linked to a terror organisation acting in Greece.

Police sources said that the safehouse in Koukaki was rented a year ago by one of the men arrested during the counter-terrorist police operation that began on Wednesday.

Inside, police have found a small quantity of C4 explosives, rolls of dynamite, detonators, timers and kalashnikov bullets. A search in the house of the second suspect and his friend revealed two guns and digital evidence that is being examined, along with all the other evidence seized, by the forensics lab.

So far, no evidence has been found to support charges against the three suspects for participating in any illegal organisation but only for weapons and explosives possession.