In Brief
GREEK-TURKISH TIES
Karamanlis plans to make historic visit to Ankara for talks next month The government has proposed August 22-23 as the dates for Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis to conduct an historic visit to Ankara, government sources said yesterday. Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan invited Karamanlis to make the trip – which would be the first by a Greek premier in 45 years – after the two men inaugurated work on a natural gas pipeline in Evros earlier this month. RETURNING MIGRANTS Valid passport, residence permit required for re-entry by August 31 Immigrants living in Greece who are planning to return to their homelands for summer visits will be allowed to re-enter the country between July 15 and August 31 as long as they have certain valid documents with them, the Public Order Ministry said yesterday. They must have a valid passport and their old residence permit as well as a document certifying that they have applied for a new work permit or residence permit. LABOR APPEAL Unions wanted at negotiating table Labor Minister Panos Panayiotopoulos yesterday appealed to the country’s largest umbrella union for it to return to talks over labor reforms, 24 hours after the negotiating process reached an apparent impasse. Panayiotopoulos said the bill introducing more flexible working hours and cheaper overtime would be voted on by MPs this summer. GSEE refused the request and said it was planning a 24-hour nationwide strike with the civil servants’ union ADEDY – possibly for next Friday. Railway strike Disruptions to train services are expected for the next three days as workers from the Hellenic Railways Organization (OSE) are due to begin strike action today with a three-hour work stoppage from noon. An identical work stoppage will follow tomorrow, coupled with one from 9 p.m. to midnight. On Friday, workers are due to stage a 24-hour strike. Anarchist raid Around 60 anarchists briefly occupied a Spanish cultural organization in central Athens yesterday, police said. The anarchists entered the Cervantes Institute in the district of Kolonaki at 6.50 p.m. and replaced a Spanish flag with a banner supporting anarchists recently arrested in Spain and Italy. No damage was caused, police said, and the anarchists left peacefully after 40 minutes. (AP) Samos immigrants Officers arrested 26 illegal immigrants from Afghanistan yesterday morning after they had been left on the Aegean island by traffickers, police said. The immigrants, including two women and a child, are thought to have arrived on Samos in two boats from the nearby Turkish coast. Police said they were all in good health. Deadly parking A fight over a parking spot on the island of Lesvos late on Monday resulted in the death of a 54-year-old man after he came to blows with his neighbor, police said yesterday. The two men were arguing over the space, according to officers, when Costas Psanis, 35, started to throw punches at Kyriakos Hatzipavlidis. The doctors report said that Hatzipavlidis died of heart failure. Drug arrests Five people were arrested in Patissia, central Athens, late on Monday for selling drugs, officers said yesterday. A police search of the four men and one woman found some 1.5 kilos of heroin, 160 grams of cocaine and 30,000 euros in cash. Irenaios suit The solicitor of former Patriarch Irenaios of Jerusalem yesterday submitted a lawsuit to the Greek Parliament against Deputy Foreign Minister Panayiotis Skandalakis. Irenaios accuses Skandalakis of engaging in diplomatic contacts aimed at removing the former patriarch from his post. Irenaios was axed by his own bishops on May 6. Less than three weeks later, his dismissal was confirmed during a meeting of the world’s Orthodox leaders. Holdup Two armed robbers made off with an unknown amount of cash after holding up a Bank of Cyprus branch in Metamorphosi on the Athens-to-Lamia highway yesterday, north of Athens. The two men fled the scene on a motorcycle after firing three shots at a window.
