BRUSSELS, Jan. 5 (UPI) -- One of two letter bombs sent to the European Parliament exploded Monday as it was opened, but no one was hurt, CNN reported.
The device that exploded was sent to German Christian Democrat Hans-Gert Peottering, the head of the European People's Party, the largest political group in the European Parliament.
"There was a bang in the office and a small fire that followed," said an official in the building.
A second device was sent to the office of Jose Ignacio Salafranca, a vice president in the same political group, but authorities seized it before it was opened.
Both packages were in a small box about the size of a video cassette and both were postmarked from Bologna, Italy, on Dec. 22.
Four previous devices were also sent from the northern Italian city of Bologna to European Commission President Romano Prodi, European Central Bank head Jean-Claude Trichet, the EU police agency Europol and Eurojust, which helps fight cross-border crime.
European police forces are hunting for Italian anarchists suspected of being behind the mail bombs.
