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Athens News Agency: News in English, 96-12-28

Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.forthnet.gr/ape>


NEWS IN ENGLISH

Athens, Greece, 28/12/1996 (ANA)

MAIN HEADLINES

  • Bad weather continues to sweep the country
  • Twenty-five dead, 178 injured on road in three days
  • Tsohatzopoulos to visit Bosnia
  • Athens dismisses Turkish criticism over mosque
  • Source of water contamination located
  • Turkish smuggler sentenced to 17 years imprisonment
  • Last tax-free state bond auction

    NEWS IN DETAIL

    Bad weather continues to sweep the country

    Snow continued to fall today in many parts of the country, cutting off villages in mountainous areas and creating transportation problems.

    Vehicles travelling on the main and secondary road networks in Macedonia, Thrace, Epirus, Thessaly, parts of central Greece and the Peloponnese are having to use snow chains, while drivers are being warned to be especially careful due to patches of ice.

    The temperature this morning in the northern town of Florina reached -10C, while the snow in Pilio, eastern Greece, is one metre high.

    Northeasterly gale force winds in the Aegean continue to tie up vehicle and passenger ferries in Piraeus and Rafina destined for the islands of the Aegean, Crete and the Dodecanese.

    Meanwhile, the National Meteorological Service (EMY) forecast a respite in the harsh weather conditions later this evening.

    The snow and freezing rain hit Greece early Thursday.

    Twenty-five dead, 178 injured on road in three days

    Twenty-five people died and 178 were injured - 67 seriously - in 116 traffic accidents across the nation over the last three days.

    Authorities have taken emergency measures on roads as the weather worsens and the holiday season heads towards New Year's Day.

    Ninety per cent of road accidents were reported on rural roads, police said, and were mostly due to excessive speeding and drunk driving.

    Tsohatzopoulos to visit Bosnia

    National Defence Minister Akis Tsohatzopoulos will visit the Greek peacekeeping contingent stationed in Visoko, Bosnia, on Sunday and Monday.

    Mr. Tsohatzopoulos will visit the camp of the Greek force in Bosnia (ELDYB) and of SFOR and address Greek servicemen tomorrow night. On Monday morning he will hold talks with the Bosnian foreign minister.

    Athens dismisses Turkish criticism over mosque

    Foreign ministry spokesman Costas Bikas reiterated yesterday that members of the Moslem minority in the Xanthi region were free to exercise their religious rights, as provided in Greece's consititution and in accordance with the 1923 Lausanne Treaty's provisions.

    Mr. Bikas was responding to criticism by the Turkish foreign ministry regarding suspension of a mosque's construction in Xanthi prefecture. Specifically, police arrested 17 individuals in Kimmeria, Xanthi on Monday after they refused to heed the authorities' calls to stop construction of a mosque until a new building licence was issued.

    Mr. Bikas said work had been suspended because it was not being carried out according to the licence, which had been issued only for side extensions to the building.

    He added that construction would resume after the licence was reviewed, and lashed out against Ankara, accusing it of referring to false facts and of attempting to upset relations between Christian and Moslem Greek citizens in Thrace.

    The Turkish foreign ministry had lodged a complaint with Athens' embassy in Ankara, alleging that Greek authorities were preventing the building of a mosque even though a construction licence existed.

    Source of water contamination located

    Water company officials said today that the water which caused an outbreak of gastro-enteritis in seven communities in Pieria, northern Greece, earlier this week came from two new springs which had only recently been connected to the region's supply network.

    Following tests at the Chemistry Department of Thessaloniki University, it was ascertained that the water came from the two new springs ''Arapis Lakos'' and ''Aghia Triada''.

    The first symptoms appeared mainly among children and elderly people in the seven communities of Pieria early Thursday morning.

    By the evening, more than 200 people had been taken to Katerini hospital and the Litochoro Medical Centre suffering from gastro-enteritis.

    All were discharged shortly after being treated.

    The two springs have been disconnected from the network and the water supply will resume later today, but only for household use.

    Following the necessary repairs to the network, the seven communities are expected to have drinking water early next week.

    Turkish smuggler sentenced to 17 years imprisonment

    A Turkish smuggler arrested early yesterday off the coast of Symi shortly after putting ashore 47 Iraqi Kurdish illegal immigrants was sentenced to 17 years and seven months jail by a Rhodes court yesterday.

    Akif Hoplamaz, 30, from Fetiye, had set out from Datsa on the Turkish coast. His original destination had been the Greek island of Kastellorizo but he changed course for Symi because of rough seas.

    The illegal immigrants told the police that they had each paid $3,500 to Hoplamaz to take them from Turkey to Greece. All the Iraqis - 31 men, 10 women and six children - have requested political asylum.

    Last tax-free state bond auction

    Increased interest was shown during yesterday's auction of three- and seven- year state bonds - the last of the state tax-free securities - with interest rates bid at lower levels than those set by the finance ministry as a base.

    The average interest rate for seven-year bonds fell to 11 per cent from 11.20 per cent initially set by the state, while for three-year ones decreased to 10.50 per cent from 10.70 per cent, which was the auction's base interest rate.

    The finance ministry believes that the market gave a vote of confidence to lower interest rates and this facilitates imposition of tax for the upcoming issue in the new year.

    WEATHER

    Cloudy with sleet in Attica with snow on higher areas and possibly in the northern suburbs. Strong to gale force winds. Slight improvement towards the evening. Temperatures from 2-6C. Cloudy in Thessaloniki with possibility of snowfall on surrounding mountainous areas. Strong to gale force winds. Temperature -2 to 2C.

    FOREIGN EXCHANGE

    (Friday's closing rates - buying)

    US dlr. 245.054 Pound sterling 413.029 Cyprus pd 521.594 French franc 46.797 Swiss franc 182.131 German mark 157.639 Italian lira (100) 16.056 Yen (100) 213.379 Canadian dlr. 179.473 Australian dlr.194.948 Irish Punt 408.605 Belgian franc 7.658 Finnish mark 52.774 Dutch guilder 140.641 Swedish kr. 35.760 Norwegian kr. 38.013 Austrian sh. 22.429 Spanish peseta 1.874 Portuguese escudo 1.564

    (S.S.)


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