According to all indications, the court's ruling will be negative since many of the attorneys of the victims' families do not wish for the television coverage of the trial, while DA Christos Lambrou and Assistant DA Vassilis Markis were opposed.

Of the 31 attorneys representing families, 22 disagreed with the live transmission of the trial by television channels, however there were nine who wanted the cameras inside the court.

Another objection to be discussed today, is the legality of the court's composition. The objection of the defense attorneys was submitted yesterday, after the objection on the publicity issue. Specifically, Nikos Papanastasiou's attorney, Panagiotis Roum eliotis, stressed that Article 8 of the Constitution, which concerns the way in which judges are chosen, is being violated.

According to Mr. Roumeliotis the names of the judges in the lottery were not selected from the 176 appeals' judges and appeals' court presidents, but from a sixth of them. Mr. Roumeliotis ended by asking how these names were selected, by what criteria an d what names were entered into the lottery.

Meanwhile, the Greek Embassy to London will send a note of protest to British authorities concerning the arrest of 25-year-old Greek postgraduate student Charalambos Dousemertzis, who was arrested in Newcastle based on the new terrorism law.

According to information, the 25-year-old was found in possession of leftist documents with references to N17.

The Greek consul authorities in London were not informed on Dousermetzis' arrest, which took place on February 25.

All the people of the world are being called to turn on a light, as visible as possible (candles, lamps, etc.), and place it by their window, in their yard or garden, in order to express their opposition to this predetermined war against Iraq. This will be visible from the sky, it will be photographed and filmed by satellites, it will be covered by the media and recorded in the memoirs of humanity as the ultimate testimony of hope of a common future for all people.

"Let us create an image that will paralyze Bush and the "petrol people" with shame. A picture with no tricks, which cannot be disputed, a picture that reflects our beliefs. On Sunday, March 9, between 8pm and midnight (local time) turn on a light, as vis ible as possible, a candle, a lamp, a lantern, a headlight by your window, on your balcony, in your yard or in your garden. Every hour, every minute, every second counts to stop the enormous army that has been mobilized. Thanks to the Internet, the image of a lighted planet can be transmitted as a shining line. Do not despair! If the war is declared before Sunday, keep the light on with more persistence. It will be an eternal testimony that the war being prepared is against the will of the people, the Ame rican people most of all, because it has no form of resistance against the television transmitters that under the control of authority", mentioned the invitation for participation in the campaign.

He mentioned that he would ask Cypriot parties to take clear positions on the subject, either at the National Council meeting this Saturday or later, saying that time was not important.

Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Papandreou characterized this juncture in time a historical chance to resolve the Cyprus issue, in statements he made after a long meeting he had with the Prime Minister yesterday.

We must look into how far the referendums on both sides will move, underlined the Foreign Minister, and he continued saying that Greece has supported the moves of the Cypriot government, while we must see if there is political will on the other side.

Answering questions about the negative answers of the other side, Mr. Papandreou responded that Rauf Denktash insists on rejecting the plan. We are a breath away from the solution, but not everything has been solved, he said, adding that: The question th at arises is not if Denktash agrees with the plan, but whether he agrees to put it to the judgment of the Turkish Cypriot people.

According to Mr. Beglitis' statements to "Flash Radio", the Greek Embassy to London received directions yesterday to initially protest intensely and verbally to the British authorities and Police Authorities in Newcastle.

Furthermore, the Foreign Ministry directed the Greek Embassy to submit a formal note of protest to the Foreign Office, in order to be informed on the exact evidence in the indictment and the circumstances under which 25-year-old Charalabos Dousemertzis w as arrested on February 25.

As Mr. Beglitis pointed out, the failure to formally inform Greece, as is dictated by the police cooperation of the two countries on terrorism, has created concerns in the Foreign Ministry, since the student has been being held for 10 days, while the For eign Ministry, diplomatic authorities in London and the Ministry of Public Order, were not informed of the case.

Specifically, according to her statements to "Flash Radio", the 25-year-old had concentrated anything published about N17 and other terrorist organizations (in the press, the Internet, in books), at his house in Newcastle. The material was to be used in his PhD, while Dousemertzidis has already received a Masters degree in political-economic sciences.

His family learned of his arrest from the news, since although he had communicated with while he was in custody, he did not inform them of his arrest, possibly so as to not worry them, while they do not know where he is being held, or what the name of th e attorney that has been appointed to defend him is.

The DAs participating in the N17 trial proposed the overruling of the objection on the composition of the court. The defense attorneys' objection was made yesterday, after the discussion of the objection on the trial's publicity.

Meanwhile, Dimitris Koufontinas appeared aggressive in his discussion this afternoon with the President of the Court Michalis Margaritis. Koufontinas appreciated that the objection on the issue of the court's composition would be overruled. He also asked

for Mr. Margaritis' resignation, making mention of dependencies and pressures towards the court President. The President in turn, responded that the court will do its duty and will decide what is in the best interest of the trial, while stressing that he

was appointed to the position 30 years ago.

Foreign Minister Giorgos Papandreou declared the opening of the works and made mention of a "complex social issue". He "confessed" that he has at times supported the need "to see the addict as a patient and not a criminal". He warned that the SE European

region is not a sideliner as "the beast grows" with the spreading of drugs, which is dangerous to legality and democratic institutions. However, Greece has processed bilateral programmes with neighboring Balkan countries, in order to deal with the proble m.

A simple penal and police confrontation of the issue is not enough, according to the Minister, who gave the example of Afghanistan and stressed that the country's income from drug production, is equal to the international aid it receives.

Mr. Papandreou made special mention of the under accession EU member-states, greeting the presence of their delegates at the conference. Fighting drugs will be the main topic at the conference on drug trafficking in Asia, which is being organized by the Greek Presidency of the EU in cooperation with France, on May 21-22 in Paris.

In the meeting they discussed Mr. Annan's invitation to the Greek Cypriot, the Turkish Cypriot, the Greek and the Turkish side as well as Great Britain to be in The Hague on Monday. The Greek Cypriot side and the Turkish Cypriot side will state whether t hey agree to hold separate referendums on the peace plan.

Mr. Simitis and Mr. Papadopoulos characterized as creative, constructive, productive and detailed the discussion they had but they did not make any further clarifications stating that negotiations are in progress.

The Greek Prime Minister characterized the stance of the Greek Cypriot side as very constructive as opposed to the stance adopted by Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash. He warned Mr. Denktash that his stance leads the Turkish Cypriot side to total isol ation and undermines Turkey's EU accession course.

Mr. Simitis assured that the European framework accompanying the Cypriot Republic guarantees that any difficulties that could arise in Cyprus' course will be overcome, reiterating that the Cyprus issue is a major national issue for Greece. He also stress ed that the Cypriot people will decide on the issues that concern them.

Greek representatives at the Convention will be making informative speeches within the framework of the conferences, while a dialogue will follow with representatives of local societies' and citizens' agencies.

The conferences will begin in Thessaloniki, northern Greece, on March 11 and end in the Ionian island of Corfu on June 10.

He accused the Turkish Cypriot side for total inaction because it has not displayed a will for cooperation on negotiation issues over the Annan Plan such as the selection of the national flag, national anthem, or anything else.

The Greek transport plane, with final destination the city of Alexandroupolis in northern Greece, was flying at an altitude of 14.000 feet in the civil aviation air-corridor H-59 in the Athens FIR.

The ASE received a boost as a result of the selective investments in the sector of telecommunications and the absorption of pressures in the banking sector.

The general index rose to +0.20% at 1.567,63 points, while the volume of transactions was small at 47 million euros.

Of the stocks trading today, 139 recorded gains and 141 had losses, while the value of 100 stocks remained unchanged.

Mr. Protopapas stated that the Greek government protested yesterday through a verbal demarche, while today Mr. Giannitsis submitted a written one expecting an official briefing by the British authorities on the accusations against the Greek student.

Responding to relevant questions, Mr. Protopapas pointed out that the negative behavior of the British authorities should be castigated. He said that the British did not act like the Greek authorities in the case of the British nationals caught taking pi ctures of Greek military airports.

The EU Presidency strongly deplores the indiscriminate use of force by the Israeli Defence Forces, which only fuels the vicious cycle of violence.Whilst recognizing Israel's right to ensure security for its citizens, the EU Presidency calls the Israeli a uthorities to do everything in their power to prevent further deaths of civilians.Terrorist acts and violence are not an alternative to the peace process.

The EU Presidency urges both the Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority to put an end to this situation and to contribute constructively to the resumption of the political process.

in accordance with due judicial process.

The recent trial of two army officers with respect to the mass killings of civilians by the army in Itaba on September 9, 2002 did not meet minimum judicial standards.

The EU therefore urges the Transitional Government of Burundi to apply those standards to the full to all individuals who are responsible for this massacre of civilians by the army as soon as possible, as was underscored by the UN High Commissioner for h uman rights during his visit to Bujumbura.

The EU wishes to remind all parties in the conflict of their obligations under international humanitarian law to respect civilians.

The Acceding Countries Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, the Slovak Republic and Slovenia, the Associated Countries Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey and the EFTA countries, members of the European Economic Area, align themselves with this declaration.

2003, continues to follow developments on the ground in Somalia with great concern and notes with disquiet that occasional conflicts have erupted in areas of the country, lately in Mogadishu.

The European Union deplores the serious violations of the commitments undertaken which are still occurring and calls for an immediate cessation of all acts of violence in Somalia. It calls on all parties to abstain from hostilities and any act likely to increase tensions during the peace negotiations.

The European Union considers of utmost importance the effective establishment of a mechanism of monitoring of the declaration on the cessation of hostilities in order to ascertain responsibilities. In this regard, the European Union will support well-pla nned efforts that the African Union will deploy to this purpose.

In this context, the European Union reaffirms its full support for the IGAD sponsored peace process and its commitment to move the peace process forward and assist in the implementation of a possible peace agreement. It expresses its appreciation for the

crucial role played by the IGAD Technical Committee coordinated by Ambassador Kiplagat of Kenya and for its efforts to overcome all obstacles to the implementation of the declaration on the cessation of hostilities and turn them to advantage of all conce rned with a view to strengthening the peace process. The EU encourages the Technical Committee to identify the objectives of phase 3 of the Somalia Reconciliation Conference.

The European Union notes with satisfaction the intention of the IGAD Ministerial Technical Committee to play a more active and consistent role in overseeing and supporting the negotiations.

The European Union calls on all signatories of the cessation of hostilities to continue to fully participate in the negotiations with a view to achieve further concrete results at an early date.

The Acceding Countries Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, the Slovak Republic and Slovenia, the Associated Countries Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey and the EFTA countries, members of the European Economic Area a lign themselves with this declaration.

The 17N defense attorneys pointed out in court that according to information, there is a hidden camera videotaping the procedure on behalf of an agency. They requested the confiscation and destruction of the device and the audio-visual material collected

so far.

The Ministry of Justice stated that it does not record the trial not even for the purpose of keeping an archive or for historical reasons because it is forbidden by the law and this ban is in effect for the state as well. Only the transcripts of the tria l are being kept.

The company that undertook to install the closed-circuit network has given the assurance that there is no audio-visual recording equipment in operation anywhere inside the prison.

Called to comment on a statement made by a US official, who backs the two names solution, Mr. Beglitis stated that the Greek side remains firm in its negotiating position on the FYROM name.

He pointed out that Greece rejects the double name for FYROM because it is not a realistic proposal. He expressed the view that negotiations should continue to find a mutually acceptable solution. He clarified that the renewal of the interim agreement is

automatic and it is provided by a relevant article included in the interim agreement itself.

The Greek Foreign Ministry spokesman was called to comment on the statement made by the US ambassador to Skopje. The US diplomat allegedly stated that the United States at this phase are willing to actively contribute to the solution of the name issue ta king under consideration the fact that Greece is their ally in NATO and FYROM is their ally in the war on Iraq.

Mr. Beglitis stated that he is not aware of the specific statement and added that he knows that the negotiations are placed firmly within the framework of the UN and under the guidance of the UN secretary general through his representative, Mr. Nimitz.

Mr. Karamanlis stressed that the future of Cyprus will possibly be decided in The Hague and it can be auspicious only if a functional and viable solution is safeguarded in accordance with the UN decisions and the European standards.

The ND leader expressed his support to Mr. Papadopoulos and the political forces in Cyprus. He pointed out that the intransigence displayed by Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash and the Turkish establishment should make the international community thin k as it is called to look for more effective ways to deal with this phenomenon.

According to Mrs. Bonino, the drug production did not decrease in the past 40 years, it simply has moved to different parts of the world. For example, it may be on the decline in Thailand, while at the same time there is an explosive increase in another part of the world. She said that drug-trafficking has not decreased and money laundering continues.

Mrs. Bonino said that drug production has moved from the borders of Equador with Colombia to the northern part of the country. The northern part of Equador is no longer under the control of the government, said Mrs. Bonino, stressing characteristically t hat we live in a schizophrenic world.

Mrs. Alison Jamieson, a British researcher specializing in crime and the organized crime in Naples, Italy stated addressing the conference that last year Afghanistan became again the biggest opium producer in the world with 3.400 tons of the drug.

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