In Brief
Freak accident
One dead, 2 critical, after truck overturns on Mount Athos A 46-year-old man was killed and another 18 people were injured when the cargo section of a pickup truck became detached and overturned on Monday during the transfer of a group of worshippers to a monastery in Mount Athos, police in northern Greece said yesterday. Another two passengers, a 71-year-old Cyprus national and a 28-year-old Syrian, sustained serious injuries in the fall and were airlifted to hospital in Thessaloniki by a Super Puma rescue helicopter. It is thought that the worshippers had been traveling in one of the trucks used by monks to transport supplies between monasteries as private vehicles are banned within the monastic community. The cause of the accident remained unclear yesterday. Information sharing Opposition MPs against USA bill New Democracy MPs sitting on a parliamentary committee yesterday approved a Justice Ministry bill that attempts to facilitate cooperation between US and Greek authorities on terrorism and crime but was not welcomed by opposition deputies who fear it gives Washington too much access to the personal data of Greek nationals. PASOK and Popular Orthodox Rally (LAOS) representatives expressed reservations about the draft law but MPs from the Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA) and the Communist Party were completely opposed to the proposals. Athens and Washington agreed in June to share information as part of an effort to include Greece in the USA’s visa waiver program. Belgrade embassy The Greek Embassy in Belgrade suffered minor damage early yesterday after assailants hurled two firebombs at the building. Serbian police said that one window was broken and the fire damaged the facade of the building. Witnesses said that five people fled the scene of the attack, for which no motive was given. Athens stabbing A clash between Somali migrants in the center of Athens led to one man being stabbed and the other arrested yesterday. The victim was taken to the hospital with injuries that were not thought to be life threatening. Thessaloniki downpour Heavy rain lasting more than two hours caused a number of problems in Thessaloniki early yesterday. Municipal teams had to be called out to remove mud and debris from several roads which were flooded in the downpour. The fire service also had to respond to dozens of calls to pump water out of basements in the city, which has been troubled by sudden showers throughout this summer. Police attacked Police officers in Thessaloniki came under attack from a group of about 20 people as they were about to arrest a 27-year-old man yesterday. Officers said that they had stopped the suspect in the Dendropotamo district of the city on suspicion of possessing drugs. The suspect got away when the policemen were attacked but the officers managed to arrest a 60-year-old man who was allegedly part of the group. He appeared before a prosecutor later yesterday. The officers also said that they recovered a 17-gram packet of hashish, which they believe the 27-year-old discarded when he ran off.
