In Brief
DOCTORS VISIT
Medical experts from abroad to assess archbishop’s condition today Doctors from Germany and the USA will begin visiting Archbishop Christodoulos in the hospital from tomorrow with the aim of helping their Greek counterparts decide what treatment the head of the Church of Greece should undergo for the suspected cancerous tumor in his liver. Doctors at the Aretaio Hospital issued a statement yesterday saying that the archbishop’s health was improving after fluid was removed from his digestive tract on Monday. Christodoulos spent a few hours in the intensive-care unit after the procedure. DIPLOMAT DEATH US Embassy in Cyprus says military attache committed suicide The US Embassy in Cyprus said yesterday that the death of its military attache, Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Mooney, was a «personal tragedy» and had no «political or security implications.» Mooney, 45, was found in a remote mountain area of the island on Monday. He had been missing for four days. An autopsy revealed that he bled to death from a cut to the throat. A forensic investigator said the wound was self-inflicted and there was no evidence of foul play. Cypriot police are treating Mooney’s death as suicide. SCHOOLS IN 5-year-olds must go to nursery All 5-year-old children in Greece will be required to go to nursery school after the summer vacation, it was revealed yesterday. The Education Ministry told Kathimerini that it plans to change the law, which until now only required children to start education at primary school at the age of 6. The change in the law will lead to the creation of 88 new nursery schools, according to the ministry. Immigration policy Greece is one of several European Union countries that are lagging behind EU targets in implementing legislation to forge a common immigration policy, Brussels said yesterday. Greece, Italy, Germany, France, Spain, Portugal and Britain showed the largest «deficits» in implementing EU policies on policing and immigrations, according to yesterday’s report. Brussels found that only 53 percent of action in these areas agreed upon in 2006 were implemented by every EU member state. ERT strike Employees of state broadcaster ERT are due to stage a 14-hour strike starting from 10 a.m. today in protest at plans to create a subsidiary company. The strike will mean that no news programs will be broadcast on ERT TV and radio stations. Embassy shut The US Embassy in Athens will be closed today in observance of Independence Day, a US national holiday. Student riots A 31-year-old German man will face trial because he allegedly took part in a student riot in Thessaloniki in February, judges in the city decided yesterday. The unnamed suspect has been in custody since then, accused of possessing explosive devices and resisting arrest. However, judges decided yesterday to release the 31-year-old from jail on bail of 10,000 euros. Ferry line A new ferry line connecting Thessaloniki with the northern Aegean islands of Lemnos and Mytilene was inaugurated yesterday. The ferry route that will help connect the northern half of the country will be run by ferry operator Saos Ferries and will operate twice a week, every Tuesday and Thursday. Lesvos migrants Coast guard officers detained 20 illegal immigrants on the eastern Aegean island of Lesvos yesterday, the Merchant Marine Ministry said. Their nationalities were not made public. Two of the migrants said they had reached the island in a rubber dinghy with another 15 immigrants. Driver killed A 43-year-old woman was killed in Thessaloniki yesterday after the vehicle she was driving ran off a bridge. A 50-year-old female passenger who was also in the car was seriously injured, police added. An investigation has been launched into the causes of the accident.
