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Macedonian Press Agency: Brief News in English, 98-09-24
BRIEF GREEK NEWS BULLETIN BY THE MACEDONIAN PRESS AGENCY
Thessaloniki, September 24, 1998
TITLES
[01] ROMANIAN NATIONAL TAKES HOSTAGES IN ATHENS BEFORE CAPTURE, 10
DOWN
[02] PM TO BE BRIEFED ON MASSACRE, PUBLIC ORDER MINISTER BACK FROM
BRUSSELS
[03] PROSECUTOR TO PROBE INTO CONDITIONS OF LAST NIGHT’S MASSACRE
[04] CIVIL AVIATION AUTHORITY STAFF TO CONDUCT STRIKE UNTIL SUNDAY
[05] NATO CONVENES OVER KOSSOVO
[06] YUGOSLAV PRESIDENT MILOSEVIC RECEIVES GREEK BUSINESS
DELEGATION
[07] SPARTATHLON ’98 RACE BEGINS TOMORROW, 23 COUNTRIES
REPRESENTED
[08] RUSSIA’S AMBASSADOR TO GREECE NOW DEPUTY PM. FOR SOCIAL
POLICY
[09] THESSALONIKI PICKED AS BALKAN ENTRY POINT FOR CHIQUITA
BANANAS
[10] GREEK FM SALUTES BULGARIAN INITIATIVE FOR BALKAN FMs MEETING
[11] US DEFENSE DEPARTMENT PROPOSES SALE OF $245 MISSILE SYSTEMS
TO GREECE
[12] ALBANIAN GOVERNMENT TO BE RESHUFFLED IN A MATTER OF DAYS
[13] US ENVOY HOLBROOKE TO SEPARATELY MEET TODAY WITH CLERIDES AND
CEM
NEWS IN DETAIL
[01] ROMANIAN NATIONAL TAKES HOSTAGES IN ATHENS BEFORE CAPTURE, 10
DOWN
Athens, September 24 (MPA)
The 25-year-old woman Amalia Ginaki who was probably the most
tragic victim in last nights horrific incident is fighting for her
life at the intensive care unit of the Red Cross in Athens, where
her attacker, the Romanian criminal Matei Sorin, is also
hospitalized but whose life is out of danger.
The drama started when Sorin, who had escaped from the Greek
prisons numerous times, stormed into the apartment housing Ms.
Ginaki and her family members and took them hostage under the
threat of a hand grenade.
The Greek police ambushed the residence after mistakenly assessing
that the grenade was a fake one. When confronted, Sorin activated
the deadly weapon by pulling the pin from the grenade, which
exploded on the young woman and also injured the Police Force’s
commander, deputy commander, two SWAT team members and four other
police officers.
[02] PM TO BE BRIEFED ON MASSACRE, PUBLIC ORDER MINISTER BACK FROM
BRUSSELS
Athens, September 24 (MPA)
Prime Minister Kostas Simitis has requested a through report
from the secretary-general of the Public Order Minster Yiannis
Papadoyiannakis, on last night’s massacre in Athens where four
civilians -who were taken hostage by a Romanian criminal- and
eight police officers were injured when police stormed their
apartment n order to free them.
In light of last night’s events, Public Order Minister George
Romeos is expediting his return from Brussels today, where he was
attending the EU Public Order ministers summit.
[03] PROSECUTOR TO PROBE INTO CONDITIONS OF LAST NIGHT’S MASSACRE
Athens, September 24 (MPA)
The Athens District Attorney Georgios Koliokostas has ordered
an emergency preliminary examination into the conditions and
causes of last night’s massacre that left at least two persons
maimed and about four others fighting for their lives in local
hospitals.
It started as a standoff between police and the Romanian fugitive
Matei Sorin yesterday evening and escalated into a massacre when
police stormed the apartment where Sorin had broken into and was
holding a family of three as hostages, while threatening to
explode the hand grenade.
He was demanding from police a get-away car and 500,000 dollars to
release the hostages.
According to a police spokesman, Sorin, who was reportedly under
the influence of heroin, pulled the pin from the grenade and
fastened it on the pants of one of the hostages, Amalia Ginaki,
25.
When police stormed the apartment, Matei pushed the girl towards
the policemen simultaneously exploding the hand grenade.
The girl underwent surgery which resulted in the amputation of her
leg. Also injured in the explosion were the Commander and deputy
commander of the police force, as well as six other police
officers, one of whom lost his right leg.
[04] CIVIL AVIATION AUTHORITY STAFF TO CONDUCT STRIKE UNTIL SUNDAY
Athens, September 24 (MPA)
The skies are to be clear, perhaps too clear, after civil
aviation employees declared 24-hour rolling strikes until Sunday.
According to Greece’s Civil Aviation Authority, only forty percent
of domestic and foreign flights are to be conducted, while no
charter flight will take off. The protesters are opposed to civil
Aviation Authority’s transformation into a private company.
[05] NATO CONVENES OVER KOSSOVO
Lisbon, September 24 (MPA)
The Defense ministers of NATO’s member-states are to meet in
Portugal today in order to discuss the situation in Kossovo and
the overall Balkan region.
The Alliance will reportedly examine ways to intensify the
pressure exerted on Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic, in
order to stop the Serb attacks against Kossovo’s Albanian
community.
[06] YUGOSLAV PRESIDENT MILOSEVIC RECEIVES GREEK BUSINESS
DELEGATION
Belgrade, September 24 (MPA)
Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic met yesterday with a
delegation of the newly established Yugoslav-Greek Business
Council, which consists of distinguished business people from both
countries.
The Greek and Yugoslav business people briefed Mr. Milosevic on
their plans in the sectors of energy, industry, agriculture,
trade, transport and telecommunications as well as on the
potential for capital investment in projects.
Mr. Milosevic welcomed the establishment of the council and said
that its proper functioning would contribute to both countries'
economies.
The Greek side was represented, among others, by the chairman of
the Greek section of the council, Mr. Mytilineos, and officials
from the dairy company DELTA, the Hellenic Telecommunications
Organization (OTE) and the Titan Cement Co.
[07] SPARTATHLON ’98 RACE BEGINS TOMORROW, 23 COUNTRIES
REPRESENTED
Athens, September 24 (MPA)
Over 190 athletes representing 23 countries will be in Athens
tomorrow to take part in what is considered to be one of the most
grueling races in the world, the international ultra-distance
endurance race "Spartathlon '98".
The race, held for the 16th consecutive year, will begin on
Friday at the foot of the Acropolis. The athletes will have 36
hours to run the 246-kilometer distance to the city of Sparta, in
southeastern Peloponnese. They will be tracing the steps of the
ancient Athenian courier Pheidippides, and will run 1,200 meters
up Mount Parthenio in the dead of night.
According to the ancient Greek historian Herodotus' account of the
Battle of Marathon, Pheidippides was sent to Sparta to ask for
help when the Persians landed at Marathon. Herodotus says
Pheidippides arrived in Sparta "the next day".
The Spartathlon was originated by John Foden, a British Royal Air
Force wing commander who ran the course in 1982 with four RAF
colleagues.
The 1st International Spartathlon was organized in 1983 with the
participation of 45 runners from 11 countries as well as Greece.
[08] RUSSIA’S AMBASSADOR TO GREECE NOW DEPUTY PM. FOR SOCIAL
POLICY
Moscow, September 24 (MPA)
Russia's Ambassador to Greece Valentina Matviyenko has accepted
her nomination as a Deputy Premier in charge of social policy in
Prime Minister Yevgeni Primakov's new cabinet.
The 49-year-old Ukrainian-born envoy is expected to meet President
Boris Yeltsin later today to "formalize her appointment". Although
the new cabinet has not yet been announced, Mrs. Matviyenko would
become the first woman deputy prime minister in post-Soviet
Russia.
[09] THESSALONIKI PICKED AS BALKAN ENTRY POINT FOR CHIQUITA
BANANAS
Thessaloniki, September 24 (MPA)
A recently signed agreement between Greece's Fruita and the well-
know multinational Chiquita is expected to turn Thessaloniki's
port into a major transit center for the import of large
quantities of bananas towards the Balkans.
The first shipment of some 40,000 cartons of bananas is expected
to arrive in Thessaloniki tomorrow. Fruita has made arrangements
for storage in the port's warehouses.
[10] GREEK FM SALUTES BULGARIAN INITIATIVE FOR BALKAN FMs MEETING
New York. September 24 (MPA)
Greece’s Foreign Minister Theodoros Pangalos has saluted the
initiative taken by his Bulgarian counterpart Nadezda Mihailova
for a Balkan FM’s meeting held yesterday at the offices of
Bulgaria's permanent representation offices in New York.
The Foreign Ministers discussed the resolution plan adopted
yesterday by the European Union for Kossovo.
Also attending the session were the foreign ministers of the
signatory countries of a joint statement on Kossovo, namely
Albania, Romania, Turkey, Slovenia and FYROM.
"I believe that we all share the view that efforts should be made
to achieve a peaceful solution to the Kossovo issue, to avoid
military threats and military intervention...and begin a
negotiation process to establish a regime of greater autonomy",
Mr. Pangalos stated after the end of the meeting.
Regarding a UN draft resolution, which was to be discussed by the
Security Council yesterday, Mr. Pangalos said the EU had long ago
agreed on the draft resolution and only the US remained to approve
of it.
He further added that Russia's agreement on the UN draft
resolution had been achieved during a meeting on Monday with new
Russian FM Igor Ivanov.
Mr. Pangalos said he was optimistic that the draft resolution
would be approved by the Security Council.
"The draft resolution is a strong but balanced warning to all
sides involved (in the Kossovo issue), and this especially pleases
us, as this is the spirit of Greece's approach," Mr. Pangalos
said.
[11] US DEFENSE DEPARTMENT PROPOSES SALE OF $245 MISSILE SYSTEMS
TO GREECE
Washington, September 24 (MPA)
The United States Department of Defense has announced the proposed
sale to Greece of $245 million of missile systems and rocket
launcher systems.
The sale includes 18 Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS), 146
extended range rocket pods, 81 Army Tactical Missile System
(ATACMS) guided missiles and launching assemblies, 11 command post
carriers, 162 Ì26 rockets and other related equipment.
The Prime contractor for the arms deal would be Lockheed Martin
Vought Systems, a unit of Lockheed Martin Corp. In a statement
announcing the sale, the Pentagon said it would provide the Greek
army with an area fire system for use against hostile artillery,
air defense and maneuver elements.
The Pentagon also announced that the arms deal would not adversely
affect the military balance in the region.
[12] ALBANIAN GOVERNMENT TO BE RESHUFFLED IN A MATTER OF DAYS
Tirana, September 24 (MPA)
The general council of Albania’s ruling Socialist Party is to
convene today in order to discuss changes proposed by Premier
Fatos Nano hereby marking an imminent cabinet reshuffle.
Mr. Nano has refused all demands of his resignation made by the
main opposition party and stated that he will form a new cabinet
composed of technocrats, will strengthen the public and justice
sectors and will improve ways of combating corruption and illegal
trade.
“There will be changes in the government, not of the
government,” Mr. Nano said.
Reportedly, the Ministers of Public Order and Justice are likely
to be replaced.
[13] US ENVOY HOLBROOKE TO SEPARATELY MEET TODAY WITH CLERIDES AND
CEM
New York, September 24 (MPA)
The United States presidential envoy to Cyprus Richard
Holbrooke is to hold separate meetings with the President of
Cyprus Glafkos Clerides and the Turkish Foreign Minister Ismael
Cem in New York today.
During his contacts with Mgrs. Cem and Clerides, Mr. Holbroke
will be accompanied by State Department coordinator Thomas Miller.
According to the Cyprus News Agency, the United States are
promoting direct contact negotiations between the two sides
concerning issues of security and demilitarization.
Later today, President Clerides is to present a speech before the
national committee for foreign policy on “The Cyprus issue -
opportunities for resolution”.
Complete archives of the Macedonian Press Agency bulletins are available
on the MPA Home Page at http://www.mpa.gr/ and on the U.S. mirror at
http://www.hri.org/MPA/
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