In Brief
Faliro shootout
Officers catch inmate out on furlough, seek second man Police detained one suspect and were seeking a second yesterday following a shootout in the coastal suburb of Palaio Faliro involving officers of the motorcycle-riding DIAS squad. According to police, the two men fired at the DIAS officers when they attempted to stop the pair for a routine inspection. The police returned fire but there were no reports of injuries. A chase ensued that resulted in the arrest of one of the suspects – a foreign national on the first day of a prison furlough. There were no details about the second suspect. ISAP disruption Four-hour stoppage today The Piraeus-Kifissia urban electric railway (ISAP) will be suspended for four hours from noon today as railway staff attend a general assembly. The section of the ISAP railway between Monastiraki and Attiki is to remain out of service until the end of the year due to ongoing work. As a concession, the Athens Urban Transport Organization (OASA) has said that commuters with monthly travel cards for the ISAP line will be able to use their tickets on lines 2 and 3 of the Athens metro – on the section Monastiraki-Omonia-Attiki – until the service resumes. Protester beaten An Iranian woman was in the hospital yesterday after being beaten by two unidentified assailants outside her Athens home late on Monday. The woman has been on a hunger strike along with eight of her compatriots for nearly three weeks in a bid to speed up their asylum applications. The nine protesters have sewed their mouths shut and set up a tent outside the entrance to Athens University to draw attention to their cause.The Iranian woman suffered shoulder injuries after being beaten by a man wielding a bat. The assailant had been seated on the back of a motorcycle being driven by an accomplice. Municipal action The Federation of Municipal Workers’ Associations (POE-OTA) yesterday called a 24-hour strike for Friday, November 19, and work stoppages for Saturday and Sunday, November 20 and 21, demanding the payment of outstanding wages for employees and the signing of a collective work contract. The planned action is likely to disrupt services at ministries as well as other public services. Power cut The region of Megalopoli, in the Peloponnese, was plunged into darkness late on Monday night after a small animal fell onto a high-voltage cable. The blackout occured at around 11 p.m. and lasted for just 15 minutes, according to the Public Power Corporation, which managed to quickly repair the cable. It was unclear what kind of animal caused the power cut or whether it survived the experience. Boat crash Two fishing boats collided with one another off the coast of Piraeus early yesterday but none of the five people aboard the vessels was injured. The 50-year-old captain of the boat believed to have provoked the incident faced a prosecutor.
