A World War Two bomb has been deactivated in the Greek city of Thessaloniki after it forced the evacuation of some 70,000 people, officials say. The 250kg (500lb) bomb was discovered during excavation works. It will now be removed and taken to a firing range. It is thought to be one of the largest wartime bombs to be found in urban Greece. Police went house-to-house to evacuate residents so the work could be done. It was one of the largest peacetime evacuations in Greece. Many people left in their cars, but some were sent in buses to schools and sports halls. The bomb was discovered last week near a petrol station during work to expand fuel storage tanks. The army says it will be taken to a firing range, where a decision will then be taken on how best to neutralize it. Officials said the device was too degraded to tell if it was a German or an Allied bomb. But one resident of the city told the Associated Press that the bomb was dropped by British and US planes targeting German rail facilities on 17 September 1944. German forces occupied Greece from 1941 until October 1944.
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