In Brief
SHIP HIJACKED
Greek cargo carrier is latest vessel attacked off Somalia A Greek-owned cargo ship off the coast of Somalia was under the control of pirates yesterday, the Merchant Marine Ministry said, just a month after another Greek-owned vessel came under attack in the same area. The Saint Vincent-flagged Titan, which had been sailing from the Black Sea to Korea with a cargo of metal, was seized late on Thursday night, the ministry said. The 24-strong crew includes three Greek nationals, one of whom is the captain. ACHELOOS DIVERSION Souflias: Project will go ahead Public Works and Environment Minister Giorgos Souflias insisted yesterday that the controversial plan to divert the Acheloos River would go ahead. However, he said that he would stop calling it a «diversion» as the project would involve only the «transfer of a certain volume of water.» The government wants to divert the river – one of Greece’s longest – from western Greece to Thessaly in central Greece to provide water for farmers but locals fear that the diversion will have devastating consequences for them and have lodged appeals. Gang rape Police in Arta, northwestern Greece, yesterday were seeking four men alleged to have gang-raped a mentally retarded woman in front of her 87-year-old father. According to the testimony of the father, the men burst into his home, tied him up and then raped his daughter before fleeing with 70 euros. It was not clear what condition the woman was in but the father was hospitalized for shock. Bank explosion Unidentified arsonists caused serious damage to a branch of Citibank in the Cretan port of Iraklion early yesterday after smashing the bank’s facade and throwing in an improvised explosive device comprising three gas canisters. The ensuing fire totally destroyed the ground floor but caused no injuries. Baby burnt A 14-month-old baby girl yesterday was hospitalized with serious burns at Athens’s Aglaia Kyriakou hospital after knocking a pan with boiling oil off the stove of her parents’ kitchen in Hania, Crete. After suffering serious burns to her face and body, the infant was rushed to a local hospital where doctors decided to transfer her to the Aglaia Kyriakou burns unit for specialized treatment. Prison visit An unannounced visit to Aghios Stefanos Prison in Patras yesterday left Justice Minister Nikos Dendias less than satisfied with the state of security at the jail. He said efforts would be made to improve things at Aghios Stefanos and other jails in Greece. But the minister said it might take a decade before real improvements are seen in the system, and this means successive governments will have to see through the modernization project. Allergy advice Allergy specialists will be on hand today across Athens to give advice on avoiding allergies on the occasion of Greek Allergy Awareness Day. The experts will be at stands on Korai Square in central Athens, on Esperidon Square in Glyfada, on the corner of Kassaveti and Levidou streets in Kifissia, on Sotiros and Karaiskou streets in Piraeus and on Ethnikis Antistaseos and Sevasteias streets in Peristeri from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
