Athens News Agency: News in English (PM), 98-08-14

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

NEWS IN ENGLISH

Athens, Greece, 14/08/1998 (ANA)

MAIN HEADLINES

• Major heroin haul on Greek-Turkish border
• Simitis message on Armed Forces Day
• Post office and bank robbed
• Drachma, equities slump in wake of int`l crisis
• Conference on `Fair Play` in sports
• Archdiocese of Athens assistance for refugee Kurds
• Mass transit fares in Athens to rise
• Gov't orders temporary closure of 34 companies for tax evasion
• Weather
• Foreign exchange

NEWS IN DETAIL

Two Albanians have been arrested at the Kipi border crossing with 26 kilos of heroin stashed in their car, police said today.

They said Bashkim Leka, 43, who was driving a luxury Mercedes, and Gezim Konti, 40, were traveling from Istanbul headed for Albania when Kipi customs officials became suspicious because the two appeared very nervous.

A search of the car turned up 26 kilograms of heroin hidden in the car's fuel tank, packed in 51 airtight plastic bags.

Police said the two Albanians attempted to escape while the car was being searched, but were apprehended by customs officials after a chase.

Simitis message on Armed Forces Day

Prime Minister Costas Simitis said today the Hellenic Armed Forces were the "cornerstone of a strong Greece" and "a true bridge of understanding between East and West".

In a message on the August 15 religious holiday of the Dormition of the Virgin Mary, which is also the Armed Forces Day, Simitis said that the entire Greek people supported and had confidence in the Armed Forces.

He said Greece's "sensitive geographical position" dictated a defence policy "founded exclusively on the right of self-defence, as foreseen in the UN Charter".

Post office and bank robbed

A man held up a branch of the Greek Post Offices in the Athens suburb of Paleo Faliro this morning, escaping with 170,000 drachmas after threatening staff with a revolver.

In Thessaloniki, two men robbed a branch of the Agricultural Bank, one threatening staff with a sawn-off shotgun while the other waited outside on a motorcyle with which they escaped with about 5 million drachmas.

At the time of the robbery there were no customers in the bank which has no security guard.

Drachma, equities slump in wake of int`l crisis

A renewed financial crisis in Russia had a domino effect on Greek and other European markets yesterday, driving stock prices and the German mark lower.

Domestic markets were badly hit, with the drachma losing substantial ground against most foreign currencies.

Equities shed 3.89 per cent to finish at 2,513.25 points; capital outflows were 500 million DMarks while short-term interbank rates rose by 1-1.5 percentage points, bankers and brokers said.

The Greek currency was 1.36 per cent off against the US dollar, 1.02 per cent down against the British pound, 0.72 per cent lower against the DMark and lost 0.78 per cent against the Ecu.

Currency outflows reached 500 million German marks, while short-term interbank rates rose by between 1 and 1.5 per cent.

Dealers noted that although domestic market sentiment remained positive, prolonged market turbulence abroad could reverse the climate.

Sector indices suffered heavy losses. Banks plunged 4.16 per cent, Leasing fell 2.61 per cent, Insurance ended 4.0 per cent off, Investment eased 3.26 per cent, Construction plummeted 6.07 percent, Holding fell 3.99 per cent and Miscellaneous ended 4.18 per cent lower.

The parallel market index for small cap companies ended 4.79 per cent off, and the FTSE/ASE 20 index fell 3.85 percent to 1,527.26 points.

Conference on `Fair Play` in sports

The 4th conference of the European movement "Fair Play" will be held in Athens between Sept. 23-26 under the auspices of the Olympic Games committee, and entitled: "Audience Behaviour and the Ideal of Fair Competition".

The conference will be attended by several noted university professors and experts from various European Olympic committees.

Organisers believe the conference can stimulate interest among the sports world, since over the past decade discussions on audience behaviour at athletic events has been on the forefront throughout Europe.

Archdiocese of Athens assistance for refugee Kurds

Archbishop of Athens and All Greece Christodoulos yesterday initiated a new aid programme for some 200 Kurd refugees living in Koumoundourou square of central Athens.

The Archdiocese of Athens, in cooperation with local Churchs and ecclesiastical societies, will initially provide breakfast and in a few days dinner as well.

Mass transit fares in Athens to rise

Most mass transit fares for the greater Athens will increase as of Monday.

Bus and trolley fares will increase from 100 to 120 drachmas, while the special rate fare will increase from 50 to 60 drachmas. Airport express-bus fares will rise from 200 to 250 drachmas from 5 a.m. through midnight and to 500 drachmas from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m.

However, the price of bus/trolley frequent user cards will drop from 6,000 to 5,000 drachmas, while the price of bus/trolley/subway combination cards remains at 8,000 drachmas.

Finally, ticket fares for transportation to one or two continuous zones remain the same, as the regular fare for three-zone transportation rises from 150 to 180 drachmas, with the special rate fares hiked from 50 to 60 drachmas.

Gov't orders temporary closure of 34 companies for tax evasion

The finance ministry yesterday ordered 34 enterprises around the country to close for periods ranging from five days to a month as a penalty for tax evasion.

The ministry said in a statement that most of the firms were bars, cafeterias, night clubs, tavernas and hotels.

WEATHER

FOREIGN EXCHANGE

(S.S.)

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