ATHENS, Greece (AP) — The Greek coast guard said it rescued 242 people off the eastern island of Lesbos Wednesday after the wooden boat they traveled in capsized, leaving at least three people dead.
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How the world sees Greece
Wednesday, October 28, 2015
My Trip to Help Refugees in Europe
Since traveling to Sri Lanka in 2004 following the tsunami, our foundation has sent trauma teams to Indonesia, Samoa, Japan, the Philippines and Nepal. We've worked with other international disaster groups for weeks at a time in remote mountain villages -- sometimes with only a dozen residents -- and played with thousands of children in makeshift relief camps in every corner of the world. Cyclones, tsunamis, earthquakes and superstorms all leave behind victims who must rebuild their homes and lives. As the refugee crisis worsened in Europe, and with the support of our donors, my son and I set off to train Red Cross workers near Zagreb who struggled to keep up with the increasing numbers of migrants headed for Western Europe. This time, I have been away for about a week. As the plane touches down at the new Terminal 3 at Heathrow after a short trip visiting the refugee camp on the Croatian border, the frightened eyes of one resident there are still visible -- burnt on the back of my tired eyelids. I walked the long jetway into what seems like miles of cold marble leading to a checkpoint below the huge sign, "UK Border." Here, I present my US Passport, answer the predictable "What is the purpose of your visit?" and "How long will you be in the UK?" and am quickly cleared to board the escalator down to retrieve my suitcase. I reflect on the fact that my US passport is a privilege easily taken for granted. In my bag is only what I felt I'd need to visit both London and Croatia: a sturdy raincoat, a pair of good boots, three sweaters, as many shirts, a few pairs of jeans, a pair of dress slacks, underwear, socks, pajamas, toiletries, some wires and adaptors and something I rarely leave behind - a small temperature gauge. I find it difficult to sleep outside of about a ten-degree range, so it's helpful to have an accurate reading. Over my shoulder, I carry a small case that holds some snacks, my computer, two pairs of eyeglasses and the book I am reading, "The Children of Katrina." About my age and roughly the same size, the man whose eyes remain in my consciousness probably left Syria many weeks before I left my home in Connecticut. Unlike him, I heard no bombs dropping near my home nor did I sense any imminent danger when I prepared to leave my home. While I saw the colors of changing leaves in the woods as I drove, he saw mostly burnt out buildings, piles of gray rubble, smoke still rising from the ruins of his corner market when he took flight. I bought groceries before I left and drove to JFK; he stuffed his small backpack with fruit and crackers, walked for days across a neighboring country and eventually climbed aboard a small rubber boat with a dozen others to float off to an unknown future. Only a mile from shore, the boat's pilot jumped into the water to return to shore leaving everyone else to make the trip alone. Nearly 3,000 of his friends drowned this year including one three-year-old boy whose picture the world has seen and will never forget. On dry land hours later, my alter ego began a long walk similar to the tens of thousands like him who have made this journey. If he was one of the lucky ones, he was handed a bag containing bread, water and maybe some figs or grapes along the way, gifts of any number of good Samaritans in Greece or Macedonia who cheered him on. Many hours aboard a bus, a train ride packed to the max and then another long bus ride brought him to the camp near the Serbian border, at Opacovac, Croatia where we met less than a week ago. I was dry, well fed and dressed in warm clothing. He was every opposite. At Heathrow, once I retrieved my suitcase, I walked through the exit marked "EU Arrivals." The doors at the other end just passed the inspection tables used by customs opened to shelves holding boxes of liquor, dozens of brands of perfume, jewelry, watches, chocolates and row upon row of gifts I could purchase without paying VAT. Welcome to the United Kingdom! I spotted the driver I'd asked to meet me and was soon on my way to my hotel in central London. I was in the back of a late model sedan. Far from his home, my Syrian friend climbed down the stairs of the bus inside the fences of Opacovac where border police shuttled him into the UNHCR camp built to house 4,000. He was part of a group of 7,500; all led along a muddy path to sit on benches and processed. Neither he nor any of his group carried passports. He announced that he was seeking political asylum and wanted to go to Germany. After a few hours sitting on wooden benches, he was taken to one of many tents where small cots had been stationed for him to stretch out and sleep. If he was lucky, he'd be under shelter; if not, he'd be outside in pouring rain under a thin poncho issued to him when he entered the camp. Asked if he had any medical issues, he also had an opportunity to visit a Red Cross station where he could receive emergency care for blistered feet, a hacking cough or diarrhea. I learned later that many sought help most often for these three maladies. Plastic bottles of clean water were placed near the tents next to latrines where he and others could defecate. Most of the paths were covered with freshly placed gravel though some muddy patches remained. He received four pieces of bread stacked neatly on a napkin together with a tin of fish pâté and an apple. He may have left the camp the next day, boarding a bus to the Hungarian border to take another train through Slovenia to Austria; he might also have waited another three days before leaving the camp when Hungary closed their border the day after we met. I'll never know. * * * No one we met in London denied the moral necessity of allowing Syrians and others who made this journey entry into the European Union; at the same time, no one had answers as to how to improve the situation. With colder weather and the snows of winter looming around the corner, this migration will most likely turn into an even more desperate humanitarian crisis. A vocal right wing is calling for closed borders, and some immigrants are already being deported. Europe has quickly become a tinderbox, tense and volatile without leadership and consensus, burdened by struggling economies made worse by the demands of millions of refugees seeking opportunity. One German man told us about a small country village in Bavaria where 200 residents have lived peacefully for centuries. The government just settled 2,000 refugees there. * * * The ride into London presented me with the most extreme cognitive dissonance I've ever experienced. Every third car a six-figure purchase, the owners hurrying into restaurants and clubs where champagne and caviar overflow. Shop windows sparkle while the homeless panhandle between fur coats, diamonds and cashmere. Drunken rugby fans mix with art collectors considering million-dollar abstracts for their living rooms. Crowds of shoppers along Regent Street seem oblivious to life outside the comfort zone of an illusory future, sobered no doubt for a few moments by the morning news. Consumerism may be the most destructive degenerative sickness of our culture, and fashion, as Mark Twain remarked, the whore of time. Together, they take our attention away from poverty, wealth disparity and world hunger. * * * Refugees in Opacovac cannot adjust the temperature in those tents to help them sleep, and I cannot deny my life of privilege. Now, returning to the US, we all live amidst this unbelievable paradox of haves and have-nots. It will take all I've got to reach deep into my soul for the resilience, hope and optimism I had with me when I left home. Truth be told, this trip ripped my heart out. For those of us at Second Response, there is not much more we can do but keep on keeping on. May I, and all beings, be free from suffering. -- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.
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Former Boss Set For GREEK Job?
Former Sunderland boss Gus Poyet may be a target of Aston Villa, but the chances are that he could be working in Greece very soon. Poyet will be ...
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Black vs Orange: GREEK Deferred Recruitment
GREEK Life at Pacific is unique compared to many other organizations. Justin Gibbs '16 commented, “We are one of the few schools that actually have ...
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Rushing into Rushing? A personal take on why Pacific's GREEK recruitment process might be better ...
I was thrown into the GREEK scene, which, while it has many, many great aspects, also requires a certain amount of emotional maturity that only comes ...
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Potential change in GREEK recruitment? Student committee to research new GREEK recruitment policy
For joining GREEK organizations, however, all first years who are interested in pledging are expected to complete a minimum of 12 units with an overall ...
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AP NewsAlert
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Coast guard rescues 242 people after boat capsizes near Lesbos, unclear how many were onboard.
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100s Rescued After Boat Capsizes Off Greece
The Greek coast guard has rescued 242 people after a boat capsized near the island of Lesbos.
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Europe's Refugee Crisis and International Accountability
The 17-point plan unveiled at the recently-concluded summit of European leaders addressing the refugee crisis may help mollify some of the worst aspects of the humanitarian and political crisis engulfing Europe, but much still needs to be done. Spending part of my sabbatical in Europe, I have witnessed firsthand the impact of the refugee crisis, the largest human migration witnessed on the continent since 1945. Normally open borders are now restricting access, there is a strong military presence in train stations, and the issue of asylum-seekers has emerged as a major topic of conversation everywhere. My daughter, who was traveling with us, altered her plans in order to go to the Greek island of Lesvos to volunteer in support of refugees. The stories she is telling are heartbreaking, including the loss of the three dozen refugees who drowned en route to the island from Turkey. Many of the refugees--particularly those from Iraq and Syria--are well-educated and are not among the most impoverished. They include doctors, lawyers, and professors, forced to flee when threatened by members of ISIS, which has seized many of the urban areas of northeastern Syria and northern Iraq. Indeed, the poor cannot afford the costs of the smugglers who often charge exorbitant rates to transport them from the refugee camps in southeastern Turkey to the country's west coast and place them on the boats to make the crossing to Greece. Seven and a half million people (more than one-third of Syria's population) have been displaced, with over four million fleeing into exile. However, only about 150,000--well under 4 percent of the total--have attempted to enter Europe. Indeed, as much attention as there has been on the impact of the influx of refugees on Europe, the fact is that Turkey, Lebanon, and Jordan -- which have less resources or infrastructure to deal with such a demographic burden -- are caring for far greater numbers of refugees, both proportionate to their populations and in absolute numbers, than any European country. Turkey is hosting nearly two million refugees. Lebanon, whose total population is only 4.5 million, has taken in 1.2 million Syrians. Jordan (population 6.4 million) is hosting 650,000. Indeed, these countries and other Middle Eastern states have taken the majority of Syrian refugees. The office of the United Nations High Commissioner on Refugees, the World Food Programme, and other U.N. agencies were totally unprepared and are seriously underfunded. This sudden influx of asylum-seekers has led to some xenophobic backlash. Yet European fears of some kind of Muslim takeover are completely unfounded. For example, even if all four million Syrian refugees came to Europe and all of them were Muslim, it would raise the Muslim population on that continent from 4 percent to only 5 percent. And even though the birthrate among European Muslims is slightly higher than non-Muslims, birth rates decline as the standard of living and education rises. Furthermore, Syrians are already well-educated and their birthrate is comparable to that of many European countries. Influential anti-Islamic forces in the United States are doing their best to stoke this paranoia, however. In a recent segment headlined "Terrorists Inbound? Taking in Refugee Could Open Doors to Jihadists," Fox News showed what they claimed to be a "new video" of young men on a European train shouting "Allah Akbar" ("God is Great! ") The bizarre aspect of this reportage is that not only do plenty of non-terrorists Muslims chant that slogan (they could have been celebrating a soccer victory), the film clip was actually from 2010, long before the current refugee crisis. Refugees who become immigrants have a lower crime rate than the native population. When allowed to integrate, they tend to become productive citizens, start small businesses, and put a lot more money into the social system than they take out. The large numbers of professionals among the Syrian asylum-seekers could be an asset to the aging European population. A related issue is that the birthrate in most European countries is so low that, without immigrants, the continent would actually lose population, some countries by double-digits within the next 30 years. Many of the refugees crossing into Europe are from Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, and Somalia, all countries where the violence and turmoil are attributable primarily or at least in part as a result of U.S. military intervention. The breakdown of authority in Libya and the ensuing violence following the NATO-backed overthrow of the Gadhafi regime in 2011 has not only forced many Libyans to seek sanctuary, but has made that country an available exit point for refugees and migrants from impoverished and conflict-prone parts of Africa. The majority of newest refugees are Syrians, many of whom are escaping the savage bombardments and political repression of Bashar al-Assad's regime, but perhaps at least as many are fleeing from the so-called Islamic State, the Iraqi-led Islamist cult which was a direct outgrowth of the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq. As a result, it would not be unreasonable to assert that the United States is ultimately responsible for much of the refugee crisis. Despite this, Washington has agreed to admit only 10,000 of the refugees, leaving other countries to face the burden of dealing with the consequences of U.S. policies. In one sense, however, this is not new. The United States is still deporting Central Americans and Mexicans fleeing north to escape the impact of other U.S. policies, including the Cold War-fueled violence of the 1980s and subsequent neoliberal economic policies and the militarized drug wars. In the face of the ongoing tragedy in Europe, outstanding examples of human compassion have emerged. Most of the support has come from ordinary citizens, not political leaders. Greeks, despite struggling under desperate economic conditions themselves as a result of EU-imposed austerity measures, have been extraordinarily generous. Even in Hungary, where the right-wing government has imposed the most draconian measures against asylum-seekers, thousands of Hungarians have donated food and clothing to assist the refugees. Pope Francis has called for every parish on the continent to provide support for at least one refugee family. Indeed, the outpouring of support throughout Europe has been inspiring. It would be nice, however, if the United States, which has been willing to expend massive amounts of resources to promote war in the Middle East, would be willing to provide even a modest proportion of that in support for its victims. _This article originally appeared in NCRonline_. -- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.
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The Latest: Greece: 242 People Rescued After Boat Capsizes
The Latest: 242 people rescued after boat capsizes near Lesbos, unclear how many were onboard
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Syracuse University News » » Greek Community Invites ...
Greek Community Invites Children to Greek or Treat. On Friday, Oct. 30, from 3-5 p.m. in Walnut Park, the six councils of the Syracuse University Greek community ...
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Apply to be a Member of the 2016 Student Disciplinary or GREEK Judicial Board
Student Conduct and Community Standards is recruiting members for its 2016 Student Disciplinary Board and GREEK Judicial Board, which are still ...
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Several refugees drown off GREEK coast after boat sinks
Europe. Several refugees drown off GREEK coast after boat sinks. Bodies of two boys and a man recovered so far after a boat carrying about 300 ...
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Fourth Person Found Dead Following Floods in Attica, Greece
A man was found dead in the Menidi stream in Eastern Attica on Wednesday evening. Preliminary reports attribute his death to drowning and place it approximately four days ago, according to Greek media reports. Most of the middle-aged man’s body was covered in leaves and mud when police officers found him. The man has yet to be
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Migrant crisis: Two children and a man drown near Lesbos
At least three migrants drowned and the Greek coastguard rescued 242 others when their wooden boat sank north of the island of Lesbos on Wednesday,…
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Migrant Crisis: At least three dead in latest boat sinking ...
Read Migrant Crisis: At least three dead in latest boat sinking off Greek island of Lesbos latest on ITV News. All the World news
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Congressman Dold on OXI Day
Seventy-five years ago this month, the Nazis were sweeping through Europe with frightening ease. The Nazi war machine seemed horrifyingly effective as country after country fell. This was the backdrop on the early morning of October 28, 1940 when the Axis forces requested a meeting with Greek Prime Minister Ioannas Metaxas. Surely, when the emissary […] The post Congressman Dold on OXI Day appeared first on The National Herald.
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Migrant Children Among Dozens Feared Dead Off Greece Coast
About 10 children were given CPR on the beach on the island of Lesbos for more than 20 minutes after their boat sank, a witness told NBC News.
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Three migrants drown, Greek coastguard rescues 242 others as boat sinks
ATHENS (Reuters) - At least three migrants drowned and the Greek coastguard rescued 242 others when their wooden boat sank north of the island of Lesbos on Wednesday, authorities said.
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Austria To Build Fence Along Parts Of Border With Slovenia
VIENNA (AP) — Austria, a strong critic of fences built to cope with Europe's migrant influx, on Wednesday announced it is joining other nations that have either already erected border barriers or are planning to do so. Austrian Interior Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner insisted the move was aimed solely at bringing order to the unrelenting influx of people entering the country, telling parliament there were no plans "to build a fence around Austria." Still the project is a major shift for the country, which has preached the sanctity of unimpeded internal EU borders since the migrant crisis intensified earlier this year. It is likely to run into domestic and international criticism for the signal it sends to other nations struggling to cope with tens of thousands of desperate people moving though their nations. And it could ignite a chain reaction along the land route in Eastern Europe used by those seeking a better life in prosperous European Union nations. Slovenia, the main entry point into Austria, also said it was ready to build a fence, while Hungary has been championing the success of its razor-wire border fences with Serbia and Croatia and plans another one with Romania. Greece already erected a barbed wire fence three years ago on a section of its border with Turkey not separated by a river. Bulgaria also has fenced off parts of its boundary to Turkey, while some Baltic states plan to erect fences on border segments with Russia. But all of these existing or planned fences are either on outer EU borders or between two EU countries where one is not yet part of the Schengen Agreement meant to ensure the free movement of persons. The Austria-Slovenia border is part of the agreement, however, and any barriers erected on it would be closely watched for possible violations. Germany, the country of choice for many fleeing regions torn by war and hardship, also signaled its intention to reduce its load of asylum-seekers. Syrian citizens are mostly being accepted, but Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere said many of the Afghans pouring into the country will likely be sent home. "People who come to us as refugees from Afghanistan cannot all expect to be able to stay in Germany," he said, adding that Afghans will be considered on a case-by-case basis. In Austria, Mikl-Leitner told parliament that the construction of "technical barriers" would begin after about 10 days of planning but gave no exact date for the start of the project. Speaking to state broadcaster ORF, Mikl-Leitner cited the need for a fence to maintain public order while Defense Minister Gerald Klug said containers or railings could be set up to "control the refugees in an orderly way." Since Hungary sealed its borders with Serbia and Croatia on Sept. 15 and Oct. 17, thousands of refugees have been flowing into Slovenia daily. From there, they go to Austria with many continuing on to Germany. Slovenian officials, who say their small nation cannot cope with the influx, have warned for days they would take action if Austria or Germany tried to close off their borders. Slovenian Prime Minister Miro Cerar firmed up those plans Wednesday. "If necessary, we are ready to put up the fence immediately" if a weekend plan by EU and Balkan leaders fails to stem the migrant surge, he said. The usually excellent relations between Germany and Austria have been strained in recent days, with Germany accusing Austria on Wednesday of dropping asylum-seekers near their border after dark without warning. Mikl-Leitner acknowledged a possible effect on migrants in Slovenia if Austria built a border barrier — a situation she said Austria already is struggling to deal with "because Germany is taking too few." "People are marching toward Germany because they feel they are invited there," she said, alluding to perceptions that German Chancellor Angela Merkel has suggested all who have a right to asylum are welcome. Merkel has said European countries have a duty to protect those who have a right to shelter, but also that all countries must share the burden. About 577,000 people seeking asylum came to Germany from January to the end of September this year, 164,000 of them in September alone, authorities say. De Maiziere, Mikl-Leitner's German counterpart, said it was Austria's fault that "refugees are driven to certain points without warning at the fall of darkness." "Austria's behavior in recent days was out of line," he said. German police have sought to keep the number of people crossing the border to 50 per hour at each crossing, according to Bavarian authorities. In recent days, new legislation has come into force in Germany that is aimed at making it easier to send home people who don't qualify for asylum — a measure aimed primarily at citizens of Balkan nations such as Albania and Kosovo. On Afghanistan, de Maiziere argued that Germany and other western nations have poured development aid into the country as well as sending troops and police to help train security forces there. He says Afghanistan's government agrees with Berlin that citizens should stay and help rebuild the country. _ALSO ON HUFFPOST: _ -- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.
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5 migrants die, dozens missing after boats sink off Turkey
At least five migrants including three children, died Wednesday after four boats sank between Turkey and Greece, as rescue workers searched the sea for dozens more, the Greek coastguard said.
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The New Moscowteers
Across Europe, apologists for Russia and Russian policy have coalesced into what amounts to a fifth column. The emergence in Western capitals of what might be called the "Party of Putin" is an exceptionally dangerous development, precisely because those who comprise it are not only the usual far-left and far-right suspects. So who are its "members"? They are, for starters, those who, regardless of party, have had nothing critical to say about the full state reception that Russian President Vladimir Putin just staged at the Kremlin for that multi-recidivist enemy of the West, and more importantly butcher of his own people, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. They are those whose craven relief that a "strongman" has appeared to impose order (his own) on the Syrian mess prevents them from seeing that the primary effect of Russia's massive, indiscriminate bombardments has been to accelerate the flow of refugees toward Europe. And they are the great many who simply ignore what motivates Putin's armed diplomacy (and not just in Syria): the desire to exact revenge on those who, in his eyes, were responsible for the Soviet Union's downfall. Putin famously declared that the Soviet collapse was the "biggest geopolitical catastrophe of the twentieth century," and he has never stopped blaming it on the United States, the Catholic Church (and its Polish pope), and Europe. Yet the Party of Putin prefers not to see how seemingly discrete events are components of a Kremlin strategy of revenge, humiliation, and, at the very least, destabilization aimed at Europe. But you need to be almost willfully blind to miss this big picture, because Putin's tactics - to pounce on the slightest breach or sign of weakness in Europe in order to sow division - have been remarkably consistent. Thus, for example, Putin reportedly told Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko in September 2014, "If I wanted, in two days I could have Russian troops not only in Kiev, but also in Riga, Vilnius, Tallinn, Warsaw, and Bucharest." That November, he wondered "what was so bad about" the 1939 Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, the Nazi-Soviet agreement that opened the way to Stalin's invasion of eastern Europe, and annexation of the Baltic states, and parts of Poland and Romania. Given this, it is perhaps not very surprising that, at the end of June, Russian prosecutors announced the opening of an investigation into the legality of the Baltic States' independence. Beyond the revisionist rhetoric, there is Putin's rapprochement with Hungary, initiated at his February 17 meeting with Prime Minister Viktor Orbán (a meeting lamented in the streets of Budapest by demonstrators opposed to becoming a "Russian colony" again). There are also his repeated contacts with Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, who went to Moscow at the height of Greece's showdown with the European Union to ask for $10 billion to print a new drachma. Then there are the Russian military's repeated violations of the airspace of Europe's border countries. And there is the Kremlin's systematic support of the populist, nationalist, and outright fascist parties that, in every EU country, are most eager to dismantle Europe. Wherever Putin goes, his party in Europe is sure to follow. When Ukrainian civil society proclaimed its love for the EU and Putin interpreted that as a hostile gesture directed at Russia, its members took Putin's side against Europe. When Putin justifies his claims to Crimea and Donbas by dredging up linguistic nationalism (Russians are all those who speak Russian), his apologists in Europe - where the Nazis used the same strategy in the Sudetenland (Germans are all those who speak German) - consider it a matter of simple common sense. One hesitates to call the Party of Putin suicidal, masochistic, or driven by self-hatred or a taste for treason; yet its members say nothing when, for the first time since the Cold War, the Kremlin alters by force frontiers upon which the continent's collective security depends. They do not know, or pretend not to know, that Putin is an empire builder surrounded by ideologues whose vision of the world, though complex and robust, is in all key respects opposed to that of the West. They place right and law in the service of strength and force, rather than vice versa; prioritize order over liberty; and treat gays and other "deviants" as the quintessence of a decadent West emasculated by the poison of cosmopolitanism. Determined to embody a "manly" Eurasian alternative to democratic civilization, Putin is now on the offensive and testing his neighbors' resistance. And the tools at his disposal are no longer those of the antiquated, corrupt, decomposing military that he inherited 15 years ago. Russia's new Kalibr cruise missiles, fired from ships in the Caspian Sea, recently surprised the world with their fearsome precision. The blindness demonstrated by the Party of Putin is obviously not without precedent. The present dangers have led me to read Thierry Wolton on the history of Communism and the voluntary surrenders that it engendered over the decades. But what is confounding is the degree to which, to quote Jean-François Revel (who was a friend of mine as well as of Wolton), knowledge of the past can go tragically unused and how the same mistakes, the same willful ignorance, can be repeated - and not always, _pace_ Marx, as farce. -- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.
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Israel Provides Medical Aid for Refugees in Greece
Israel has provided the Greek state with 1.5 tons of medicine to take care of refugees arriving at the Greece. The medicine was delivered to Greece on Monday after Israel coordinated the supply with Greek Minister of Health Andreas Xanthos. The medicine will be dispensed in areas where there is a need for medical care for large
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German Newspaper Reports on Cyprus’ Road to Recovery
German business newspaper Handelsblatt reports on the progress of the one billion euro Cypriot bailout which was adopted on May 15, 2013 and compares it to Greece’s struggle to successfully conclude a reform effort which began in May 2010. The magazine contrasts the congratulatory remarks Cypriot Finance Minister Haris Georgiadis will get from European officials in comparison to the pressure Greek
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Tourist captures image of mysterious sea monster off ...
A Scottish tourist unwittingly captured an unidentifiable sea monster while vacationing in Greece. Harvey Robertson was on a boat cruise off the coast of ...
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Deputy FM Amanatidis’ statement at the events marking the National Anniversary of 28 October 1940
Representing the Greek government at the events in Kilkis marking the national anniversary of 28 October 1940, Deputy Foreign Minister Ioannis Amanatidis made the following statement:“The Greek epic of 1940 was the first loss for what had until then been the undefeated Axis forces, and it gave hope to all the peoples of the free world.A small country stood as the vanguard in defence of the values of the civilized world and of the human rights being violated by the violence and arrogance of fascism.Today Greece continues on its course with the same values, within a united Europe and the...
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1940: Italian Forces Attack Greece
From the International Herald Tribune archives: Italy attacks Greece in 1940.
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| READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT iht-retrospective.blogs.nytimes.com |
Ancient GREEK and Roman Art Exhibit in NYC
The exhibition will include modern paintings, created by GREEK-born Italian artist Giorgio de Chirico (10 July 1888 – 20 November 1978), scrupulously ...
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Remembering the meaning of the GREEK "Ochi" in 1940
October 28 is "Ochi Day" in Greece. It marks the anniversary of the decision by Athens on October 28, 1940 to reject an ultimatum from Italian dictator ...
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Greece Wants More Migrant Aid
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras is being squeezed to house 50,000 refugees and migrants in Greece but he wants more European Union aid. The post Greece Wants More Migrant Aid appeared first on The National Herald.
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Road Tax Replacing School Tax
Facing fury from angry parents and educators, Greece's government is planning to use road tax hikes to offset plans for lower private school taxes. The post Road Tax Replacing School Tax appeared first on The National Herald.
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The Latest: Sweden to keep asylum centers secret
STOCKHOLM (AP) — The latest in the odyssey of hundreds of thousands of people trekking across Europe in search of a new life. All times local. 6:10 p.m. Greek authorities say at least five people, including four children, have drowned as thousands of refugees and economic migrants continued to head to the Aegean Sea islands in frail boats from Turkey, in worsening weather. The coast guard said Wednesday that two children and a man died off the coast of Samos, while 51 people from the same small boat were rescued. A 5-year-old girl also drowned in a separate incident off Samos. A 7-year-old boy died off Lesbos, where most migrants land, while a 12-month-old girl was in critical condition in hospital from the same boat accident. Greece is the main entry point for people from the Middle East and Africa seeking a better future in Europe. Well over half a million have arrived so far this year. ___ 6:05 p.m. Germany has informed European authorities that it will continue border checks for at least another two weeks amid the continued influx of refugees and other migrants. Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere informed the European Commission on Wednesday that Germany planned on continuing checks at the border until Nov. 13. The dpa news agency reported the development after seeing the written notification. There are normally no border controls between Germany and Austria, through which most of the migrants are coming, but to deal with the influx Germany has temporarily reinstated document checks to register newcomers as they enter. ___ 5:55 p.m. Swedish authorities say 14 refugees are refusing to leave a bus in northern Sweden, protesting that they do not want to stay in chalets in a remote and cold part of Sweden. Immigration agency spokeswoman Maria Lofgren says the standoff started late Sunday when 60 refugees from Syria and Iraq arrived in Lima close to the Norwegian border. Lofgren said Wednesday that police were handling the the case, adding the refugees would stay there only while their claims were being processed. Hadeel Waez, a Syrian asylum-seeker told Swedish broadcaster SVT "we have children and a pregnant woman, it is too cold and there are no shops and no doctor." The fully equipped chalets, made for winter sports tourists, are in the middle of woods half-a-dozen kilometers (miles) from the nearest town. ___ 5:45 p.m. Several thousands of Czechs have used a national holiday — Independent Czechoslovak State Day — to rally against asylum seekers. Wednesday's rallies in major cities across the country were organized by fringe political groupings and parties that exploit anti-migrant and anti-Muslim sentiments. The biggest demonstration was in Brno, the country's second-largest city, where more than a thousand people turned out. Other protests in Prague, Liberec, Usti nad Labem and Ostrava each mustered a few hundred protesters No significant incidents were reported. The holiday celebrates the creation of Czechslovkia in 1918. So far, few of the refugees fleeing war and poverty have used Czech territory on their way to the rich western countries such is Germany. ___ 5:20 p.m. Katerina Hola believes that migrants often need joy as much as they need food or drink. So, she and her fellow volunteers sometimes sing to the migrants to help lift their spirits. The 27-year-old volunteer from the Czech Republic is spending her work holiday aiding asylum seekers at Serbia's border with Croatia. Tens of thousands of people have crossed along the muddy frontier road, often spending hours out in the cold and rain. Hola, from Prague, says volunteers have been handing out food, drinks and clothes. She says: "People are going through difficult times. It's important to give them some joy through music." Hola plays the guitar and sings, joined by fellow volunteers playing other instruments, including a small boy — a volunteer's son — on drums. Migrants smiled as they passed by. ___ 4:25 p.m. A group of German police officers has arrived in Slovenia, joining colleagues from Austria, as the small Alpine nation struggles to manage influx tens of thousands of migrants. Germany says it sent the five officers to prepare for a wider European deployment. Slovenia has asked formally for EU assistance in manpower and equipment, complaining that large numbers of migrants streaming into the country have put too much strain on the police. The government also has sent army troops to the border. Several EU countries have responded positively to Slovenia's request. Eight police from Austria have been deployed since Oct. 13, while Slovenian authorities say officers from Hungary and Slovakia could arrive within days. ___ 4:10 p.m. Austrian President Heinz Fischer has called for better control of borders and distribution of Syrian refugees. While on a visit to Pristina, Kosovo, Wednesday Fischer said Austria is reaching its limited capacities with an expectation of some 80,000 asylum requests. So far this year half a million refugees have passed through Austria, most in transit toward Germany, creating a lot of "organizational and logistic problems," he said. Fischer said there is nothing set on the possibility of building a fence along parts of his country's border. "We should pay more attention to the problem of better checking the outside EU borders and a better distribution of the refugees within Europe," he said. "Only if the numbers are distributed equally could the burden be coped with." ___ 2:20 p.m. Danish police say a 58-year-old man faces preliminary charges of racism and violence for allegedly spitting on a group of refugees from a highway overpass near the southern port town of Roedby. Police spokesman Kim Kliver declined Wednesday to name the man but said he's from the area. A photo of him spitting from the E47 highway bridge on Sept. 8 circulated on social media and was met by chiefly critical comments. The refugees were walking on the highway after a ferry crossing from Germany. They were believed to be heading for Sweden and other Nordic countries. In Denmark, preliminary charges are a step short of formal charges. If convicted, he risks a fine or up to two years in prison. ___ 2 p.m. Croatian police say fewer refugees than usual have entered the country in the past day and a half. Spokesman Domagoj Dzigumovic says 2,700 migrants came in Wednesday morning and 5,700 on Tuesday, numbers down from the past weeks. Croatia reported a record 11,500 refugees entering on Saturday alone. Dzigumovic insists it's still too early to say whether the migrant wave toward Western Europe is slowing down. He says at least 10 days must pass before any conclusions can be drawn. Police say nearly 270,000 migrants have crossed into Croatia since Sept. 15, when Hungary closed its border with Serbia, diverting refugees to Croatia. Asylum-seekers are traveling from Turkey across the sea to Greece and then through Macedonia, Serbia, Croatia and Slovenia, trying to reach wealthy EU nations like Germany. ___ 12:35 p.m. Slovenia's prime minister says his country is ready to build a fence on its border with Croatia if an EU plan to stem their flow across the Balkans fails. Miro Cerar, speaking after a meeting of Slovenia's national security council on Wednesday, says "if necessary, we are ready to put up the fence immediately." EU and Balkan leaders agreed at a weekend summit to stem the massive migrant surge by introducing tighter border controls. Since Oct. 16, when the refugee flow was rerouted to Slovenia after Hungary sealed off its border with Croatia, more than 86,000 people have crossed into Slovenia. The small Alpine nation has been struggling to cope with the influx and has criticized Croatia for sending more migrants to the border than it can handle. ___ 12:10 p.m. Germany's Interior Minister says many of the Afghans pouring into the country will most likely be sent back to their homeland. Thomas de Maiziere says Germany and other western nations have poured millions in developmental aid into Afghanistan, as well as sending troops and police to help train security forces there, and that Afghanistan's government agrees with Berlin that citizens should stay and help rebuild the country. De Maiziere said Wednesday, "the people who come from Afghanistan cannot expect that they will be able to stay." Germany has implemented a plan to streamline the asylum process for those fleeing civil war, such as Syrians, to settle them more quickly, but also to more rapidly send home those whose case for asylum is weak. He says Afghans will be considered case-by-case. ___ 12 noon Germany's top security official has sharply criticized Austria for dumping migrants at the border between the two countries under the cover of night. Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere says "Austria's behavior in recent days was out of line." De Maiziere told reporters in Berlin on Wednesday that Austrian authorities failed to warn their German counterparts about the impending arrivals. He says the two countries have agreed to cooperate better "and I expect this to happen immediately." ___ 11:35 a.m. With no signs of a slowdown in the flow of migrants from Slovenia, Austrian officials are raising the possibility of building a fence along parts of the countries' common border. Interior Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner says a fence might be needed to ensure an "orderly, controlled" entry into Austria. Defense Minister Gerald Klug says containers or railings could be set up to "be able to control the refugees in an orderly way." They spoke Wednesday to state broadcaster ORF. The flow of migrants seeking a better life in the European Union over the west Balkans land route has shifted from Hungary to Slovenia since Hungary erected a fence along its border with Serbia last month. Most continue to Germany and other EU countries from Austria. Slovenia on Tuesday also hinted that it was considering fences, on its border with Croatia. 11 a.m. Political leaders in the Netherlands are calling for a halt to threats and intimidation amid heated debate on providing shelter for thousands of asylum seekers entering the country. In an open letter published Wednesday, the leaders of 11 political parties in the Dutch parliament say they understand the strong emotions on both sides of the debate but appeal to concerned citizens "not to confuse threats and insults with arguments. Let everybody speak, even if you totally disagree with them." In recent weeks, demonstration marches and meetings to discuss emergency housing for asylum seekers in several towns have degenerated into verbal abuse on both sides. The leaders say that anonymous threats via mail and social media also appear to be increasing, adding that "people, whatever their view, who behave that way limit freedom for all of us." Even the nation's monarch is concerned. In comments to reporters during a state visit to China, King Willem-Alexander said that, "In the Netherlands we talk things out, we don't fight them out." ___ 10:55 a.m. Sweden's immigration agency says it will no longer publicize the location of facilities intended to house refugees after more than 20 fires, many considered arsons, have either destroyed or made the buildings temporarily unusable. Migrationsverket spokeswoman Johanna Uhr says future sites "will somehow be kept concealed." Uhr says it hasn't yet decided how to do that. In recent weeks, Sweden has seen a spate of arson attacks on asylum centers or buildings to be used as such as an influx of refugees has surged. Immigration officials estimate some 190,000 asylum-seekers will arrive this year, putting Sweden second only to Germany among EU members. Last week, Migrationsverket called an idea by a Swedish municipality to keep a facility secret unrealistic. The agency's new position came after two more blazes early Wednesday. Join the conversation about this story »
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The Latest: Greece says 4 children die in stormy Aegean
STOCKHOLM (AP) — The latest in the odyssey of hundreds of thousands of people trekking across Europe in search of a new life. All times local.
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More than 1,000 migrants rescued from boats off Libya
Rescuers plucked more than a thousand migrants from overcrowded boats near Libya on Wednesday morning, Italy's coast guard said, the most reported saved in a single day in three weeks. The flow of migrants crossing the Mediterranean in rickety boats from Libya towards Italy's southern tip had been abating with deteriorating weather conditions and as more people chose alternative routes into Europe. About 140,000 have reached Italy this year in boats from Africa out of a total of about 700,000 who have come to Europe by sea, mostly through Greece.
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How The Refugee Crisis Is Fueling The Rise Of Europe's Right
Poland elected one of Europe's most right-wing parliaments this weekend, kicking out the long ruling centrists and handing the conservative Law and Justice party the country's first majority government since the fall of Communism. With its spectacular rise, Poland's right wing joins Eurosceptic and anti-immigration parties in countries across Europe that have seen significant gains in the past year. The Danish People's Party captured the second largest percentage of Denmark's vote in June's national elections. The anti-EU, anti-immigration party gained huge support, particularly in rural areas, playing on nationalist sentiment and the promise of preserving benefits for Danish citizens. The extreme-right Sweden Democrats -- a party started in the late 1980s as a white supremacist group -- has steadily risen in polls, and in one survey in August even ranked as Sweden's most popular party. Austria's far-right Freedom Party came second during last month's regional election, while Greece's neo-fascist Golden Dawn gained the third largest percentage of the vote in both of the country's parliamentary votes this year. It is important to note that although these parties have many similarities, there is a range in the extreme nature of their right-wing political values and policy platforms. Most of Europe's anti-EU right-wing parties are a far cry from groups like Golden Dawn, whose party leaders are currently on trial facing charges of running a criminal organization. Nearly all of them, however, join some of the European right-wing governments already in power -- like Viktor Orban's Fidesz Party in Hungary -- in capitalizing on ethno-nationalist sentiment and promoting anti-immigration policies. This is not a new phenomenon, as European far-right parties with anti-immigration agendas go back at least as far as the 1980s, but amid Europe's current refugee and migrant crisis their rhetoric has renewed weight. As hundreds of thousands of people flee from conflict zones in countries like Syria and Afghanistan towards Europe, many far-right anti-immigration parties speak to voters' fears of what the influx will mean for their nations. In Poland, as an egregious example, Law and Justice party figure and former Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski warned that Muslim refugees would bring parasites and diseases to the local population. Sweden Democrats' 35-year-old leader Jimmie Åkesson stated last year that "Islamism is the Nazism and Communism of our time." Meanwhile, Hungary's staunch immigration opponent Orban said in September that the country has "a right to decide that we do not want a large number of Muslim people in our country." Last week, he said that the refugees entering Europe "look like an army." “The anti-immigrant sentiment is in many ways anti-Islam, and it’s cheap, it’s easy to play on. It’s very, very troubling,” New York University professor Martin Schain, whose work focuses on European politics, says. "While these parties have not gained governmental power, they have been very successful in setting the political agenda. They really drag politics very far to the right." Over 700,000 refugees and migrants have arrived in Europe via the Mediterranean Sea so far this year, according to U.N. figures. A little more than half of the people making the journey are from Syria, and are fleeing a deepening civil war that has devastated the country. European nations have struggled to find a common policy to address the rising numbers of people seeking asylum within their borders. Some EU nations, most prominently Germany, have pushed for a quota system that would find a way to distribute refugees more equitably across Europe. But many states staunchly oppose the plan as an unjust imposition. Amid outpourings of support for refugees and migrants from some European citizens, there has been palpable and sometimes violent opposition on the continent toward the presence of foreigners. There have been clashes and racially motivated attacks at anti-immigrant protests in a number of European countries, as well as suspected arson attacks on refugee centers. A 2014 Pew survey of seven European populaces showed that the majority of respondents wanted to limit the number of new immigrants arriving in their countries, with those attitudes especially evident for people who identify as politically right wing. Along with other factors, such as targeting regional voters, Schain says right-wing populist parties are also strengthening their anti-EU stance, attacking the European Union as being ineffective and domineering due to its inability to mitigate the crisis while insisting states accept more refugees. "Because Brussels has been talking about a distribution directive for bringing these refugees in, [anti-EU parties] can pound on Europe even harder," Schain says. "There's a lot of room for them to have influence over electoral campaigns because European leaders tend to dance around the refugee issue." The far-right parties are here to stay, Schain says, and many have been established in politics for a long time. “This is their moment, and we’ll see how they’re able to exploit it.” _ALSO ON HUFFPOST:_ -- This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.
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New Start-Up Introduces Next Generation GREEK Souvenirs
GREEK Way, the promising new start-up of Stelios Kerastas and Kostas Siolas, recently introduced a different kind of tourist gift concept. The two young ...
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Cyprus commemorates Greek national day of 28th of October, 1940
Nicosia, October 28, 2015/Independent Balkan News Agency By Kyriacos Kyriacou President of the Republic, Nicos Anastasiades, received Wednesday the salute of the parade on the occasion of the anniversary of the Greek National Day of the 28th of October, 1940. The Greek government was represented by Minister of Foreign Affairs Nikos Kotzias. In statements after […]
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Teacher shares his fascination with mythology with ...
SPRING HILL — It's not every day that Greek goddess Athena visits a Hernando County classroom. But she — or at least a reasonable facsimile of her ...
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Greece's national day parades send message of unity
Greece celebrated on Wednesday the national … forces, marking the entrance of Greece in the Second World War … the Greek nation. With education, courage and unity, as supplies, Greeks can …
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Alpha Plans $1.2 Billion Debt Swap as GREEK Banks Boost Capital
GREEK lenders are working to rebuild capital bases as the European Central Bank concludes stress tests that will determine how much the banks need ...
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Greeks celebrate OXI-Day – some reckon the Referendum NO
Greeks celebrated OXI-Day in hope that it will never turn into a YES. Just kidding. Seriously: in October 1940, Greeks said OXI (NO) to Italy’s ultimatum that Greece surrenders to the powers of Axis. Result: Greece came under occupation by fascist Italy first and nazi Germany later. In July 2015, […]
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American Director Bobby Roth to Teach Master Class in Athens
American director of hit series “Lost” and “Prison Break,” Bobby Roth, will be in Athens from October 29 to November 4 for one master class on directing for young Greek filmmakers. Roth, who is also known for very successful series such as “Grey’s Anatomy,” “The Insiders,” “The Mentalist,” as well as the movies “Independence Day,”
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New Shipwreck North of Lesvos Leaves Two Children Dead
A shipwreck north of the East Aegean Greek island of Lesvos has left two children dead. The Hellenic Coast Guard conducted a rescue operation after a boat carrying migrants and refugees capsized north of Lesvos. Although 38 people who had been aboard were saved, two refugee children passed away. Their bodies are currently being examined by the
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German Newspaper: Greek PM Resorting to Old Tactics
Bild newspaper argues that Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras is returning to some of his past practices during the ongoing negotiations with international creditors. Greece and international creditors have yet to finalize an agreement on a list of reforms and measures that Greece must legislate to receive an additional two billion euros of bailout funds. Bild writes that the
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Greece’s Muslims Have Rights Too
Many Greeks don't want to admit it but the scores of thousands of Muslims living in Greece are there to stay and deserve their rights. The post Greece’s Muslims Have Rights Too appeared first on The National Herald.
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From the Beatles to the Book of the Dead, It's Coil ...
Riffs on Greek and Egyptian mythology, “algorithmic theater” based on the Beatles’ “Yesterday,” and work from Australia’s independent arts ...
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CITI: We performed a deep dive into breakfast and concluded 2016 is when cereal makes its ...
He's talking about the breakfast food, which has been pummeled by the popularity of breakfast meats, the rise of GREEK yogurt, and all the bad press ...
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Greek Government Rushing to Complete Prior Actions ...
It has been 12 days since the Greek parliament ratified a list of prior actions that would pave the way for the disbursement of two billion euros of the ...
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Bronze Age Greek warrior-king's treasure unearthed
Archaeologists in Pylos, southwest Greece, have excavated the intact tomb of a wealthy Bronze Age warrior-king buried about 3,500 years ago, in a discovery ...
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Former Sunderland boss Gus Poyet in GREECE to finalise deal to take over at AEK Athens
Poyet has today arrived in GREECE, where he will hold talks to finalise a deal that will see him take charge of AEK Athens. Journalist Dimitris Vergos of ...
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