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Two trapped, hundreds rescued after flames engulf Greece-Italy ferry

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  • Ferry sailing from Igoumenitsa to Italian port Brindisi
  • Fire appears to have broken out in hold – fleet spokesman
  • No immediate reports of serious injuries or deaths

ATHENS, Feb 18 (Reuters) – Two people are trapped on a ferry that was engulfed in a blaze as it sailed between Greece and Italy in the early hours of Friday, the Greek coastguard said, after scores of others passengers and crew members were rescued.

The coastguard said in total 239 passengers and 51 crew members had been on board the Italian-flagged Euroferry Olympia and most of them had boarded rescue vessels transferring them to the port of the island of Corfu where ambulances were waiting.

“We were woken up around 4:20 a.m. Within an hour we had left the ship … We were saved by the crew, which acted fast,” one of the passengers told Skai TV via telephone.

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There were no immediate reports of deaths or severe injuries. One person with breathing problems had been taken to the hospital, according to local health authorities.

Greek media reported that at least 10 were feared missing. Authorities could not confirm the information, saying the operation was ongoing. Hours after the alarm was raised, the ship was still ablaze.

“Two people have been trapped in the garage and efforts are being made to lead them to the deck,” one coastguard official said, adding that a helicopter was waiting to airlift them away.

A video uploaded on Greek news website Proto Thema showed the 183-metre (600 foot) ferry on fire and swathed in huge plumes of smoke. “May Day” was blasting from speakers.

The ferry had sailed from Igoumenitsa, the largest port in western Greece, and was headed to the Italian port of Brindisi, about nine hours away.

The fire, the cause of which was not immediately known, broke out near the island of Corfu in the Ionian Sea.

The ferry is part of the fleet of group Grimaldi Lines and has a capacity of up to 560 passengers, according to the company’s website.

Grimaldi Lines spokesman Paul Kyprianou told Reuters that the cause of the fire was still under investigation but there were indications it started from the ship’s hold.

“Damage is severe because despite the efforts the crew was unable to extinguish the fire,” he said.

At least three Greek coastguard vessels and the Italian financial police patrol boat Monte Sperone were involved in the rescue operation.

Ship tracking data provided by Refinitiv Eikon showed the Euroferry Olympia performing a U-turn northwest of the North Corfu channel.

In 2014, 10 people were killed when the car ferry Norman Atlantic carrying 466 passengers and crew caught fire while sailing from Greece to Italy.

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Additional reporting by Lefteris Papadimas in Athens, Giulia Segreti and Giselda Vagnoni in Rome; Editing by Sam Holmes, Lincoln Feast, Alex Richardson and Alison Williams

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Orthodox priest shouts ‘Pope, you are a heretic’ at Francis in Athens

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ATHENS, Dec 4 (Reuters) – An elderly Greek Orthodox priest shouted “Pope, you are a heretic” as Pope Francis was entering the Orthodox Archbishopric in Athens on Saturday and was taken away by police, a reminder of the lingering distrust between the two divided churches.

Video showed the man, who was dressed in black robes and black hat and had a long white beard, shouting the words in Greek outside the building before police bundled him away.

Witnesses said he shouted loud enough for the pope to hear the commotion. The man appeared to have fallen while being taken away and was lifted up by police.

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Francis arrived in Greece on Saturday for a three-day visit that Greek Catholics hope will bring the Eastern and Western churches closer together. read more

Christianity split into the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches in 1054 in what is referred to as the Great Schism, and for centuries relations were rocky.

An Orthodox priest protests ahead of the arrival of Pope Francis, outside the Orthodox Archbishopric of Greece, in Athens, Greece, December 4, 2021. REUTERS/Louiza Vradi

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In his address to the archbishop, Beatitude Ieronymos II, Francis asked forgiveness in the name of the Roman Catholic Church for its part in the historical wrongs that led to the breakup.

“Tragically, in later times we grew apart. Worldly concerns poisoned us, weeds of suspicion increased our distance and we ceased to nurture communion,” Francis told Ieronymos, whom he met during his first trip to Greece in 2016.

“I feel the need to ask anew for the forgiveness of God and of our brothers and sisters for the mistakes committed by many Catholics,” Francis said.

Pope John Paul II first asked forgiveness for the Catholic role in the break-up when he visited Greece in 2001.

Catholics and Orthodox have been involved in dialogue aimed at eventual reunion for decades and cooperate in many social initiatives but the two sides are still far apart theologically.

“We believe you have the courage and the sincerity to examine the failures and omissions of your fathers,” Ieronymos told Francis. “Between those who want to be called Christian brothers, the best language is, and always will be, honesty.”

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Reporting by Philip Pullella; Editing by Alex Richardson

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Global COVID-19 cases hit 250 million, eastern Europe infections at record levels

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Nov 8 (Reuters) – Global COVID-19 cases surpassed 250 million on Monday as some countries in eastern Europe experience record outbreaks, even as the Delta variant surge eases and many countries resume trade and tourism.

The daily average number of cases has fallen by 36% over the past three months, according to a Reuters analysis, but the virus is still infecting 50 million people every 90 days due to the highly transmissible Delta variant.

By contrast, it took nearly a year to record the first 50 million COVID-19 cases.

Health experts are optimistic that many nations have put the worst of the pandemic behind them thanks to vaccines and natural exposure, although they caution that colder weather and upcoming holiday gatherings could increase cases.

“We think between now and the end of 2022, this is the point where we get control over this virus … where we can significantly reduce severe disease and death,” Maria Van Kerkhove, an epidemiologist leading the World Health Organisation, told Reuters on Nov. 3.

Infections are still rising in 55 out of 240 countries, with Russia, Ukraine and Greece at or near record levels of reported cases since the pandemic started two years ago, according to a Reuters analysis.

Eastern Europe has among the lowest vaccination rates in the region. More than half of all new infections reported worldwide were from countries in Europe, with a million new infections about every four days, according to the analysis.

Several Russian regions said this week they could impose additional restrictions or extend a workplace shutdown as the country witnesses record deaths due to the disease.

VACCINE INEQUITY

Several world leaders have stressed the need to improve vaccination programs around the world, particularly in the least wealthy countries.

More than half the world’s population has yet to receive a single dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, according to Our World in Data, a figure that drops to less than 5% in low-income countries.

Improving vaccine access will be on the agenda of meetings of the powerful Asia-Pacific trade group APEC, hosted virtually by New Zealand this week.

APEC members, which include Russia, China and the United States, pledged at a special meeting in June to expand sharing and manufacturing of COVID-19 vaccines and lift trade barriers for medicines.

“Together we are continuing to keep supply chains functioning and are supporting trade in critical medical supplies – including testing kits, PPE and now vaccines,” New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Monday.

The World Health Organization (WHO) and other aid groups last month appealed to leaders of the world’s 20 biggest economies to fund a $23.4 billion plan to bring COVID-19 vaccines, tests, and drugs to poorer countries in the next 12 months.

Reporting by Roshan Abraham and Rittik Biswas in Bengaluru; Editing by Lisa Shumaker and Jane Wardell

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Erdogan says Turkey is set to banish 10 Western ambassadors

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, October 20, 2021. REUTERS/Afolabi Sotunde

  • Kavala has been in prison since late 2017
  • He denies charges of role in failed coup and mass protests
  • Rights groups say case emblematic of crackdown in Turkey

ISTANBUL, Oct 23 (Reuters) – Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday he had ordered the foreign ministry to declare 10 ambassadors from Western countries ‘persona non grata’ for calling for the release of philanthropist Osman Kavala.

Kavala has been in prison for four years, charged with financing nationwide protests in 2013 and with involvement in a failed coup in 2016. He denies the charges.

In a joint statement on Oct. 18, the ambassadors of Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Finland, New Zealand and the United States called for a just and speedy resolution to Kavala’s case, and for his “urgent release”. They were summoned by the foreign ministry, which called the statement irresponsible.

“I gave the necessary order to our foreign minister and said what must be done: These 10 ambassadors must be declared persona non grata at once. You will sort it out immediately,” Erdogan said in a speech, using a term meaning that a diplomat is no longer welcome in the country.

“They will know and understand Turkey. The day they do not know and understand Turkey, they will leave,” he said to cheers from the crowd in the northwestern city of Eskisehir.

The U.S., German and French embassies and the White House and U.S. State Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The Norwegian Foreign Ministry said its embassy in Ankara had not received information from Turkish authorities regarding the matter at this time.

“Our ambassador has not done anything that warrants an expulsion,” the ministry’s head of communications, Trude Maaseide, told Reuters in an emailed statement, adding that Turkey was well aware of Norway’s view on this case.

“We will continue to call on Turkey to comply with democratic standards and the rule of law to which the country committed itself under the European Human Rights Convention,” Maaseide said.

Kavala was acquitted last year of charges related to the 2013 protests, but the ruling was overturned this year and combined with charges in another case related to the coup attempt. read more

Rights groups say his case is emblematic of a crackdown on dissent under Erdogan.

‘MEANINGLESS’ TO ATTEND TRIAL

Kavala said on Friday that it would be “meaningless” for him to attend his trial as a fair hearing was impossible given recent comments by Erdogan.

Erdogan was cited on Thursday as saying the ambassadors in question would not release “bandits, murderers and terrorists” in their own countries.

“Since there is no possibility of a fair trial under these circumstances, I believe participating in hearings and delivering my defence will be meaningless from now on,” Kavala said in a written statement.

The European Court of Human Rights called for Kavala’s immediate release in late 2019, saying there was no reasonable suspicion that he had committed an offence, and finding that his detention had been intended to silence him. read more

It issued a similar ruling this year in the case of Selahattin Demirtas, former head of the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), who has been held in jail for nearly five years.

The Council of Europe, which oversees the implementation of ECHR decisions, has said it will begin infringement proceedings against Turkey if Kavala is not released.

The next hearing in the case against Kavala and others is due on Nov. 26.

Additional reporting by Nora Buli in Oslo
Writing by Daren Butler
Editing by Peter Graff, Kevin Liffey and Frances Kerry

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Six EU countries warn against open door for Afghan asylum seekers

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BRUSSELS, Aug 10 (Reuters) – Six EU member states have sent a letter to the bloc’s executive warning against halting deportations of rejected Afghan asylum seekers despite major advances of Taliban militants in their country.

The Taliban, fighting to reimpose strict Islamic law after their 2001 ouster, have made sweeping gains in their campaign to defeat the government as U.S.-led foreign forces pull out.[nL1N2PH0LT]

“Stopping returns sends the wrong signal and is likely to motivate even more Afghan citizens to leave their home for the EU,” Austria, Denmark, Belgium, the Netherlands, Greece and Germany said in the letter dated Aug. 5 and seen by Reuters.

“This is why we urge you and your teams at the Commission to intensify talks with the Afghan government on how returns to Afghanistan can and will continue in the coming months.”

Many EU member states are nervous that developments in Afghanistan could trigger a replay of Europe’s 2015/16 migration crisis when the chaotic arrival of more than a million people from the Middle East stretched security and welfare systems and fuelled political support for far-right groups.

The European Commission said it had received the letter from the six countries and would reply when ready.

Asked if the European Commission considers Afghanistan a safe country to which asylum seekers can be returned, a spokesman for the EU executive said it is up to member states to make that judgement.

“At an EU level there isn’t a list of countries considered safe relating to asylum applications or for returns. It’s up to each member state to assess … the country of origin and the situation of the person concerned,” he said.

The issue is expected to come up at a crisis meeting of EU domestic affairs ministers on Aug. 18, which was arranged mainly to discuss a surge of illegal border crossings from Belarus to EU member state Lithuania. read more Poland and Latvia have also seen an increased flow of migrants from Belarus.

Since 2015, around 570,000 Afghans have requested asylum in the EU, the letter from the six EU countries noted, 44,000 in 2020 alone, making Afghanistan the second most important country of origin last year.

“We fully recognise the sensitive situation in Afghanistan in light of the foreseen withdrawal of international troops,” the countries said, adding that an estimated 4.6 million Afghans were already displaced, many of them in the region.

The six countries urged the bloc to look into providing the best support for refugees by increasing cooperation with Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iran.

Belgium’s state secretary for asylum and migration, Sammy Mahdi, defended the initiative against criticism.

“That regions of a country are not safe does not mean that each national of that country automatically is entitled to protection,” he said on Twitter.

A spokeswoman for the Netherlands’ Safety and Justice Ministry said that if individuals had the right to asylum they can get it but there should be no catch-all label for one country.

“The situation is very worrying, it’s always under review,” said spokeswoman Charlotte Hees.

Additional reporting by Toby Sterling in Amsterdam; Editing by Nick Macfie

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Four killed as wildfires sweep Turkey, villages evacuated

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MANAVGAT, Turkey, July 30 (Reuters) – The death toll from wildfires on Turkey’s southern coast has risen to four and firefighters were battling blazes for a third day on Friday after the evacuation of dozens of villages and some hotels.

More than 70 wildfires have broken out this week in provinces on Turkey’s Aegean and Mediterranean coasts as well as inland areas, President Tayyip Erdogan said, adding that 14 were still burning.

Planes from Russia and Ukraine helped battle the flames and another from Azerbaijan was joining them. “As of midday, with the arrival of the planes, we are turning in a positive direction,” Erdogan told reporters after Friday prayers.

Forestry Minister Bekir Pakdemirli said fires raged on in six provinces and officials promised to bring to account anyone found responsible for starting them.

Villages and some hotels have been evacuated in tourist areas and television footage has shown people fleeing across fields as fires closed in on their homes.

Pakdemirli said fires were still blazing in the Mediterranean resort region of Antalya and the Aegean resort province of Mugla.

A forest fire burns near the town of Manavgat, east of the resort city of Antalya, Turkey, July 29, 2021. REUTERS/Kaan Soyturk

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“We were hoping to contain some of the fires as of this morning but while we say cautiously that they are improving, we still cannot say they are under control,” he said.

Wildfires have broken out elsewhere in the region, with more than 40 in Greece in the last 24 hours, fanned by winds and soaring temperatures, authorities said. On Tuesday, a blaze tore through a pine forest north of Athens, damaging more than a dozen homes before it was brought under control.

Fires also burned large swathes of pine forest in the mountainous north of Lebanon this week, killing at least one firefighter and forcing some residents to flee.

In Turkey, firefighters on the ground and in helicopters were fighting a blaze that killed three people in Manavgat, 75 km (45 miles) east of Antalya. Urbanisation Minister Murat Kurum said 27 neighbourhoods were evacuated there.

One person was found dead on Thursday in Mugla’s Marmaris area, 290 km west of Manavgat. The blaze continued in Marmaris but residential areas were not at risk, Pakdemirli said.

Erdogan said at least five planes,45 helicopters, drones, and 1,080 firefighting vehicles were involved in firefighting efforts at 1,140 sites.

Istanbul governor’s office banned entry to forest areas until the end of August as a precaution against fires.

Reporting by Ali Kucukgocmen, Daren Butler, Tuvan Gumrukcu in Ankara, Karolina Tagaris in Athens, Laila Bassam in Beirut; Editing by Janet Lawrence and Giles Elgood

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Greek police clash with protesters in rally against mandatory vaccinations

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ATHENS, July 24 (Reuters) – Greek police used teargas and water cannon to disperse people who had gathered in central Athens on Saturday to protest against mandatory COVID-19 vaccinations.

More than 4,000 people rallied outside the Greek parliament for a third time this month to oppose mandatory inoculations for some workers, such as healthcare and nursing staff.

A police official, who asked not to be named, said some protesters had thrown petrol bombs, prompting the police to respond with tear gas.

A rally on Wednesday was also marred by violence. read more

Recent polls showed the majority of Greeks would get the shot against the COVID-19 which has claimed 12,890 lives in Greece since the pandemic broke out last year. About 45% of a population of 11 million are fully vaccinated.

Greece has ordered the vaccination of healthcare and nursing home staff as cases have risen and urged school teachers to get the shot in time for the start of the school year in September.

Nearly 2,500 cases were reported on Saturday, bringing the total number of infected people to 474,366.

Reporting by Vassilis Triandafyllou; Writing by Angeliki Koutantou; Editing by Edmund Blair

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Turkey says part of Cyprus ghost town to reopen; EU, UK object

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  • Greek Cypriots say any reopening of Varosha unacceptable
  • Turkish Cypriots mark anniversary of 1974 Turkish invasion
  • Erdogan urges international recognition of Turkish Cypriots

NICOSIA, July 20 (Reuters) – Turkish Cypriot authorities announced on Tuesday a partial reopening of an abandoned town for potential resettlement, drawing a strong rebuke from rival Greek Cypriots of orchestrating a land-grab by stealth.

Varosha, an eerie collection of derelict high-rise hotels and residences, has been deserted since a 1974 war which split the island, a military zone nobody has been allowed to enter.

Turkish Cypriot authorities opened a small area for day visits in November 2020, and on Tuesday said a part of it would be converted to civilian use with a mechanism in place for people to potentially reclaim their properties.

“A new era will begin in Maras which will benefit everyone,” said Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, who was visiting breakaway north Cyprus on Tuesday. Maras is the Turkish name for Varosha.

Greek Cypriots fear a change to the area’s status displays a clear intent of Turkey to appropriate it. Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades described the move as “illegal and unacceptable”.

“I want to send the strongest message to Mr Erdogan and his local proxies that the unacceptable actions and demands of Turkey will not be accepted,” Anastasiades said.

Greece’s foreign ministry said it condemned the move “in the strongest terms”, while the United Kingdom, a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council, said it would be discussing the issue as a matter of urgency with other Council members, saying it was “deeply concerned”.

“The UK calls on all parties not to take any actions which undermine the Cyprus settlement process or increase tensions on the island,” a Foreign Office spokesperson said.

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell also expressed concern. “(The) unilateral decision announced today by President Erdogan and (Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin) Tatar risks raising tensions on the island & compromising return to talks on a comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus issue,” he said on Twitter.

United Nations resolutions call for Varosha to be handed over to U.N. administration and to allow people to return to their homes.

Anastasiades said that if Turkey’s “real concern was returning properties to their legal owners … they should have adopted U.N. resolutions and hand the city over to the U.N., allowing them to return in conditions of safety.”

Tuesday marked the 47th anniversary of a Turkish invasion mounted in 1974 after a Greek Cypriot coup engineered by the military then ruling Greece. Peace efforts have repeatedly floundered, and a new Turkish Cypriot leadership, backed by Turkey, says a peace accord between two sovereign states is the only viable option.

Greek Cypriots, who represent Cyprus internationally and are backed by the European Union, reject a two-state deal for the island which would accord sovereign status to the breakaway Turkish Cypriot state that only Ankara recognises.

“A new negotiation process (to heal Cyprus’ division) can only be carried out between the two states. We are right and we will defend our right to the end,” Erdogan said in a speech in the divided Cypriot capital of Nicosia.

Varosha has always been regarded as a bargaining chip for Ankara in any future peace deal, and one of the areas widely expected to have been returned to Greek Cypriot administration under a settlement. The Turkish Cypriot move renders that assumption more uncertain.

Reporting by Michele Kambas in Nicosia; Additional reporting by Jonathan Spicer in Istanbul and William Schomberg in London, Editing by Gareth Jones and Grant McCool

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Music banned on Greece’s Mykonos in new COVID-19 restrictions

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A Greek national flag flutters as people visit a beach, following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Athens, Greece, April 28, 2020. Picture taken April 28, 2020. REUTERS/Goran Tomasevic

ATHENS, July 17 (Reuters) – Greece banned music in restaurants and bars and restricted movement on its popular holiday island of Mykonos on Saturday after a rise in new coronavirus infections there.

Known as the party island of the super-rich, Mykonos is one of Greece’s most popular destinations, attracting more than a million visitors each summer, among them Hollywood stars, models and world-famous athletes.

Following a “worrying” local outbreak, the Civil Protection Ministry said it was banning music on the island around the clock and would only allow movement between 1 a.m to 6 a.m to those going to and from work, or for health reasons.

The restrictions will be in place until July 26, it said.

Greece depends on tourism for a fifth of its economy and desperately needs a strong season this year following a disastrous 2020 when visitor numbers and revenues collapsed.

The number of infections has been rising in Greece in recent weeks, forcing the government to mandate the vaccination of healthcare workers and nursing home staff, and to introduce new restrictions across the country, including allowing only vaccinated customers indoors at restaurants and clubs.

“We call on the residents, visitors and professionals on our beautiful island to strictly follow the measures… so that we can quickly control and contain the spreading of the virus and Mykonos can return to normality,” the ministry said.

Reporting by Karolina Tagaris; Editing by Christina Fincher

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