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Welcome, 77 artists, 40 different points of Attica welcomes you by singing Erotokritos an epic romance written at 1713 by Vitsentzos Kornaros

Thursday, February 18, 2016

News of the Day From Around the World

Hundreds of trucks and cars were stranded at two Greek-Bulgarian border crossings Wednesday after a blockade by Greek farmers was met with a retaliatory blockade by angry truck drivers on the Bulgarian side. Greek authorities said there were 820 trucks, about 320 cars and six buses stranded on the Greek side of the main Promahonas-Kulata crossing. Farmers have been blockading highways across Greece for weeks to protest a government-planned pension reform that critics say will increase social security contributions to unsustainable levels. The head of Colombia’s police resigned Wednesday amid accusations of illegal enrichment and sexual misconduct with young cadets that threatened to tarnish the reputation of one of the South American nation’s most-prestigious institutions. Gen. Rodolfo Palomino’s resignation came a day after Colombia’s inspector general opened an administrative probe into the accusations. The most damning charges are Palomino’s alleged participation in a male prostitution ring, dubbed the “Community of the Ring” by local media, that allegedly forced entry-level cadets to cater to high-ranking officers and even members of congress. Austria’s Interior Ministry says it will allow no more than 80 refugees a day to apply for asylum at southern border crossing points. Johanna Mikl-Leitner also says that up to 3,200 people will be allowed to enter Austria “who are seeking international protection in a neighboring country.” Bomb hoax: A Virgin Australia flight from Sydney to Los Angeles was diverted after the airline received a bomb threat that turned out to be a hoax, the airline said Wednesday. Dozens of schools around Australia have been receiving threats warning of bombings or shootings over the past month in what police believe is a hoax largely being orchestrated by a person or group overseas. Six city workers died of asphyxiation and 28 people were injured Wednesday when protesters set fire to part of a municipal building in the opposition-governed highlands city of El Alto near Bolivia’s capital of La Paz. The deaths come amid heightened political tension as Bolivians decide in a referendum Sunday whether to amend the Constitution so President Evo Morales can run for a fourth consecutive term in 2019. The Duchess of Cambridge is trying to shatter the stigma attached to mental health issues as she guest edits an edition of the Huffington Post.


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