In Brief
SOTIRIOU DEAD
Novelist who wrote about Asia Minor war dies of lung infection Novelist Dido Sotiriou died yesterday at the age of 95 from a lung infection. Sotiriou was born in Aidini, Asia Minor, in 1909 and was best known for her strong portrayal of women in books about Greeks fleeing Asia Minor and the Greek civil war. The novel that shot her to fame was «Matomena Chomata,» or «Goodbye, Anatolia,» which was published in 1962 and translated into six languages. Her funeral will take place at the Zografou cemetery in Athens on Monday. SALONICA BOMBINGS Suspect indicted for string of anarchist-linked attacks A Thessaloniki judicial council indicted a man suspected of involvement in a spate of over 60 anarchist-linked gas-canister bombings in 2003 and early 2004, to stand trial on charges ranging from the manufacture and use of explosive devices to resisting arrest. However, judges rejected a police request to take DNA samples from the suspect in a bid to establish in how many attacks he was involved. The 26-year-old, whose name has not been released, was arrested on April 16 when officers caught him in a sting operation, allegedly in the act of placing a gas-canister bomb under a private security firm’s van. RADIATION DETECTORS Portable devices to stay Some 1,000 portable radiation detectors used as part of the Olympic security operation are to be dealt out after the end of the Paralympics to the coast guard, police stations, customs posts and border crossing-points, the president of the Greek Atomic Energy Commission (GAEC), Leonidas Kamarinopoulos, said yesterday. The detectors are part of 50 million euros’ worth of equipment and know-how that the US provided Greece with for the Games. Plans are also under way to erect five permanent detectors at entry points to Greece, including Athens International Airport. Culture strike Culture Ministry contract workers decided yesterday to launch a four-day strike on Monday in protest at the non-renewal of their contracts. The civil servants, whose agreements run out at the end of the month, will gather outside the Culture Ministry on Monday, close off the Acropolis from 10 a.m. on Tuesday, and join other civil servants in a protest march on Wednesday. Pasok MP Maria Damanaki, meanwhile, accused the government of «selective renewal» of contracts and of going back on its pre-election pledge to renew public sector contracts across the board. Beating death A coroner ruled that a man found dead on a street in northwestern Athens yesterday was beaten to death by at least two people. A passer-by came across the body of 32-year-old Giorgos Dermatis in Ano Liosia at 5 a.m. and notified police. The forensic expert said Dermatis had bled to death after receiving multiple blows to the head and body. Abuse probe Health Minister Nikitas Kaklamanis yesterday said he had asked a prosecutor in Hania, Crete, to speed up his investigation into the alleged beating and sexual abuse of a patient by a member of staff at the town’s psychiatric center. Police were notified of the alleged abuse on Friday. The results of the probe are expected on October 15, Kaklamanis said. Immigrants caught Eight illegal immigrants of various nationalities were arrested on Samos yesterday after sailing over from Turkey in a wooden boat, the Merchant Marine Ministry said. Samos, which is less than a mile from Turkey, attracts large numbers of illegal immigrants. A reception center designed to hold 100 people already contains around 250. Kalavryta trains The Hellenic Railways Organization (OSE) announced yesterday that, due to ongoing work, there would be a change to the timetable of trains running between Diakofto and Kalavryta on Thursdays. Trains 4330, 1334 and 1336 will be leaving Diakofto at 10.12, 11.48 and 14.38, respectively; while 4331, 1335 and 1337 will be leaving Kalavryta at 11.46, 13.18 and 15.51. Route Nos. 1330, 1331, 1332 and 1333 will not be in operation on Thursdays until the work is finished.
