Athens News Agency: News in English (PM), 98-07-22

Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr>

NEWS IN ENGLISH

Athens, Greece, 22/07/1998 (ANA)

MAIN HEADLINES

• Three die in Attica fire
• Armaments programme focus of government meeting
• No U.S. recognition of occupied regime in Cyprus
• German travel caution on Cyprus not 'advisory'
• PM to see commissioner Friday
• Police arrest three on antiquities smuggling
• Major tourism resort planned for Crete
• Injured Dutch toddler air-lifted to Athens
• Albanian boy injured in hit-and-run
• MP recovering after eye injury
• Weather
• Foreign Exchange

NEWS IN DETAIL

Three people died today in a forest fire which broke out in the area of Kareas on Mt. Hymettus which overlooks Athens. Although the identity of the three is still unknown, there are fears that the bodies may be those of three firemen earlier reported missing after their fire-engine was engulfed by flames.

Armaments programme focus of government meeting

Prime Minister Costas Simitis will chair a meeting today on the course of Greece's wide-ranging armaments programme and foreign defence policy prior to Friday's meeting of the Government Council for Foreign Affairs and Defence (KYSEA), government spokesman Dimitris Reppas said. Today's meeting will be attended by Foreign Minister Theodoros Pangalos, National Defence Minister Akis Tsohatzopoulos and Undersecretary Dimitris Apostolakis as well as the premier's military and economic advisers.

No U.S. recognition of occupied regime in Cyprus

Greece said today that statements by US State Department spokesman James Rubin in no way indicated recognition by Washington of the Turkish occupation regime in Cyprus. Rubin justified the presence of US officials earlier this week in the Turkish-occupied north of the divided island at events marking the 24th anniversary of the Turkish invasion as being of a personal rather than an official nature. He added that employees of the US embassy had attended the events in their free time and unofficially, noting that their presence did not indicate "acceptance of the fact".

German travel caution on Cyprus not 'advisory'

Greece said today that a travel advisory on Cyprus issued by the German foreign ministry did not indicate that there was a threat to the safety of visitors going to the Mediterranean island. Government spokesman Dimitris Reppas said however that the advisory contained a warning and was an issue which would be dealt with by the Cypriot government, particularly bearing in mind that the tourist season was in full swing. The German foreign minister reportedly advises those planning holidays in Cyprus to watch the political situation on the island carefully in view of the planned stationing of Russian S-300 anti-aircraft missiles later this year.

PM to see commissioner Friday

Prime Minister Costas Simitis will meet in Athens on Friday with European Union Commissioner Monika Wulf-Mathies, government spokesman Dimitris Reppas announced today. Wulf-Mathies, who is responsible for regional policy, structural funds and cohesion funds, said yesterday in Brussels that a review of Greece's absorption of EU structural funds indicated that its development prospects now looked brighter than a few years ago.

Police arrest three on antiquities smuggling

Police in Thessaloniki today arrested three persons found in possession of 43 valuable ancient earthenware artefacts of the Mycenaean and Classical periods. The arrests were made after police stopped a car in the area of Asvestochori, in which they found the antiquities. The police initially estimated the value of the artefacts at about 10 million drachmas.

Major tourism resort planned for Crete

British-based Loyalward Ltd and the Ecclesiastical Foundation of Panagia Akrotiriani have signed a contract for a major tourism development project on the island of Crete that will create 3,200 new jobs, a Loyalward representative told the ANA. The representative said that the 250 billion drachma project provides for the construction of a new 7,000 bed tourist facility on a 26,000 stremma piece of property owned by the Toplou Monastery in the prefecture of Lassithi, eastern Crete, which will be leased by Loyalward.

Injured Dutch toddler air-lifted to Athens

A 2-year-old Dutch boy who tumbled down a hotel staircase in Crete has been brought to Athens by Air Force plane for hospital treatment. The toddler, whose name was not released upon the parents' request, was seriously injured when he fell off a third-floor staircase of a hotel in Ammoudara, Gaziou near Heraklion late last night after escaping his mother's attention. He was rushed to the Venizelio hospital, where he was found to be suffering from internal bleeding in the head. An Airforce C-130 military transport plane was immediately despatched to transport the toddler.

Albanian boy injured in hit-and-run

An eight-year-old Albanian boy was seriously injured in a hit-and-run accident in Thessaloniki today. Police said Blefter Zika, who was living with his family in Thessaloniki and attending a local public school, was hit by a car in the Pano Poli residential district and abandoned by the driver. The boy, who suffered multiple wounds all over his body, was taken by passers-by to the George Yennimatas hospital.

MP recovering after eye injury

Main opposition New Democracy MP Fanni Palli-Petralia was recovering from delicate eye surgery in an Athens medical facility, hospital sources said. Palli-Petralia was rushed to the Apollonio hospital yesterday afternoon from her holiday home on Skopelos island, where she injured her eye with a beach umbrella.

WEATHER

FOREIGN EXCHANGE

(M.P.)

Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article