In Brief
MOLYVIATIS-GUL
Karamanlis visit to Turkey back on the agenda, says Greek foreign minister Foreign Minister Petros Molyviatis said yesterday that dates for a visit by Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis to Ankara were being looked at again. He made the comments after meeting with his Turkish counterpart, Abdullah Gul, in New York. Karamanlis was planning to visit Turkey in August but the trip was canceled. Molyviatis also said he discussed the possibility of a new effort to solve the Cyprus problem with Gul. PATRIARCH BACKING Palestinians give Theophilos go-ahead Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas gave his approval yesterday to the election of Theophilos as Greek Orthodox patriarch [of Jerusalem] to replace the ousted Irenaios, the official WAFA news agency said. Irenaios was dismissed in May over the alleged multi-million-dollar sale of church land in a mainly Palestinian area of Israeli-occupied east Jerusalem to Jewish investors. Under church law, Theophilos’s August 22 election must be approved by Israel, Jordan and the Palestinian Authority. (AFP) Air show antics A formation of CASA C-101 planes from Spain’s Aguilla aerobatic team performs during the Archangel air show, the first international event of its kind to be hosted in the country. Thousands of spectators gathered to see the show, which wound up yesterday after three days at the Tanagra air force base, north of Athens. The air show included an array of aerial exercises followed by the acrobatic displays of 13 foreign teams. The Greek display featured some 30 aircraft, including F-4 Phantoms and F-16s. Illegal immigrants Authorities detained 25 illegal immigrants on the island of Samos yesterday, mostly women and children, shortly after they were smuggled into the country. Three women and 14 children, aged between five and 12, were among the Iraqi immigrants who entered the country from Turkey. They were taken to a migrant center on the island. Lacarriere dies French author and translator of numerous Ancient Greek texts Jacques Lacarriere died on Saturday at the age of 79 after suffering complications following surgery. Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis said he «incarnated the perennial Greek spirit» and that «Greece bids farewell to a true friend.» Lacarriere asked that his ashes be scattered in Greece, according to friends. Free speech In a decision made public on Saturday, the Council of State has ruled illegal military regulations that forbid personnel from making public comments or press statements without the permission of high-ranking officers. The court said the rules were unconstitutional and went against the European Convention on Human Rights.
