The Hellenic Radio (ERA): News in English, 05-08-15

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From: The Hellenic Radio (ERA) <www.ert.gr/>

CONTENTS

[01] Inconsolable Grief Identification Commences

By Vivian Papastefanou

Cyprus and Greece are in deep mourning due to the plane crash that occurred yesterday near the town of Grammatikos northeast of Attica. The crash claimed the lives of the 121 people on board, including 21 children. The torment of identifying the 118 bodies that have been recovered so far will definitely give a hard time to their relatives. The rest three remaining bodies, including that of an airhostess and that of one of the pilots, have been located but not yet recovered since they are crashed by the planes fuselage. Shortly after 11am, the identification process commenced at the morgue in Goudi. 19 bodies have already been transferred in Goudi, while within the day more identifiable bodies are to be taken there as well. The rest will remain at the morgue in Schistos to be submitted to DNA exams. Earlier, at the morgue in Goudi, coroners Mr Kalogrias and Mrs Koumarianou examined 19 bodies and briefed the relatives that have rushed to the site. Furthermore, a list with the names of the relatives has been drafted to facilitate the identification process.

Moments of Sorrow

The 40 relatives and friends of the victims that are hosted at Sofitel hotel arrived at the morgue in Goudi identify their beloved ones.

Meanwhile, the Cypriot government released the list with the names of the victims. 12 are Greeks, the German pilot, and the rest are Greek-Cypriots. 16 of the victims, including six children, came from the coastal town of Paralimni, Cyprus.

A three-day mourning has been declared in Cyprus as of yesterday, while Tuesday has also been declared as a day of national mourning in Greece and a three-minute silence is expected to be observed at 12pm. Shortly after the Mass at Athens Cathedral, Greek PM voiced his heartfelt sympathy to the relatives of the victims. Mr Karamanlis said, "This years holiday of the Assumption of the Virgin was marked by this tragic crash. Our thoughts rest with the families of the victims." Mr Karamanlis then headed towards Maximos Mansion, where he chaired a meeting with the Deputy Health Minister Giorgos Konstantopoulos to be briefed on the Ministrys operations actions shortly after the crash. Exiting the meeting, Mr Konstantopoulos stated that the list with the victims names is at PMs disposal. He also added that there were 21 children on board. Greek PM also met with Minster for the Interior Prokopis Pavlopoulos.

Cypriot Health Minister Mr Gabriilidis, exiting the Athens Cathedral after the Sunday Mass, expressed his most profound sorrow to the families of the victims and thanked the Greek government for its immediate actions and the plan drafted for the identification of the bodies. Mr Gabriilidis also said that there were 20 children on board, and not 48 as it had been announced on Sunday. Speaking on NET, Cypriot Transport Minister Mr Thrassos confirmed the information noting that the children did not belong to any team.

Translated by Areti Christou

[02] In an Airport Used by MFO Blast in Egypt

By Vivian Papastefanou

A blast on a minibus in an airport used by the multinational observance force (MFO) north of Sinai occurred today. Egyptian security forces said an explosive device had been planted under the vehicle. Another information, though, claimed that it was due to gases. Two injured men have been reported, while preliminary estimations spoke of fatalities. So far, the Egyptian Interior Ministry has not issued any announcement. It should be noted that the MFO was created to implement the peace treaty between Egypt and Israel.

[03] Amidst Reactions Israeli Pullout Begins

By Vivian Papastefanou

The Israeli pullout from the Gaza Strip commenced at midnight Sunday. Army and police forces sealed off the Kissufim border crossing that was used to enter Gaza by placing a large red sign preventing the Israelis from entering the Palestinian territory. A few hours after the 48-hour deadline began, Israeli army units entered the first settlement in the Gaza Strip to reinforce the security measures. However, settlers from Gush Katif in southern Gaza pledged to resist to the evacuation. Furthermore, tens of settlers cordoned off the main entrances of the biggest Jewish settlement in the Gaza Strip, in an effort to avert the Israeli troops from entering. Should they refuse to comply until Tuesday at 21:00 (Greek local time), they will be removed by force.

Translated by Areti Christou

[04] Incidents in Tehran

By Anna Kourti

Hundreds of university students in Iran bombarded the British embassy with stones and tomatoes on Sunday protesting against Londons opposition to Irans nuclear activities. Shouting Death to England, France and Germany, death to the USA, death to Israel, the demonstrators threatened to take over the British embassy, but the police forces removed them from the site. Earlier, Iran had accused the USA and Britain of inciting the recent incidents in the areas bordering with Iraq, where numerous Arab and Kurdish communities exist. The incidents in the Kurdish areas near the borders with Iraq and Turkey claimed the lives of 12 people.

The spokesperson of the Iranian Foreign Affairs Ministry said, Our information tells us that the USA are interfering in northwestern Iraq, which is unacceptable, and we intend to protest to the United Nations soon. The USA have reached a stalemate in Iraq and that is why they are trying to stir up problems in the region.

Translated by Areti Christou

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