Tag: Greece

Foreign chefs conquer Paris with childhood flavors for French cuisine

By Olga NEDBAEVA Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — “My mum doesn’t agree with what I do here: at home, we don’t eat like this,” laughs Alan Geaam, the first Lebanese chef to earn a Michelin star in Paris. The self-taught chef, who fled his country’s civil war in 1999, nonetheless believes that promoting Lebanon’s culinary riches means combining them with some of “the elegance and refinement” of French cuisine. At his self-titled restaurant in […]

Building fever grips Greece as tourism booms

by Hélène COLLIOPOULOU Agence France-Presse PAROS, Greece (AFP) — It’s early morning in the picturesque village of Naoussa on the Greek island of Paros, and jackhammers are already echoing as locals ready for what they hope will be a record tourist season. After two bad years because of the pandemic, tourist numbers bounced back spectacularly last year, and this summer the Aegean island hopes to do even better. Construction sites are abuzz all over the […]

Train accident in Greece kills at least 26

ATHENS, Greece (AFP) — At least 26 people were killed and another 85 injured after a collision between two trains caused a derailment near the Greek city of Larissa late Tuesday night, authorities said. A fire services spokesman confirmed that three carriages skipped the tracks just before midnight after the trains — one for freight and the other carrying 350 passengers –- collided about halfway along the route between Athens and Thessaloniki. “At least 26 […]

Bombs target Italian embassy cars in Athens: police

Athens, Greece (AFP) Two explosive devices targeted cars belonging to the Italian embassy in Greece on Friday, one of which went off causing no injuries, Greek police said. There was no immediate claim of responsibility and officers said they were investigating. A homemade bomb exploded at around 4:00 am (0200 GMT), damaging a vehicle parked at the home of an embassy officer in an Athens suburb, police said. The other device, placed near a second […]

One dead in Greece migrant dinghy sinking: coastguard

ATHENS, Greece (AFP) – Greece’s coastguard on Thursday said a man drowned and several more were rescued in the latest migrant boat sinking in the Aegean Sea. The coastguard said two of its patrol boats responded to a distress call near the island of Kos late on Wednesday. They found 11 men in the water, one of them unconscious. He was pronounced dead on arrival at Kos harbor, the coastguard said. Two weeks ago, two migrant […]

Greeks turn to firewood to heat homes amid energy crisis

by Helene COLLIOPOULOU Agence France-Presse GLYFADA, Greece (AFP) — Residents of the Athens suburb of Glyfada who are struggling to heat their homes as energy prices soar now have an option — free firewood from the local council. “We need it… especially in this difficult year,” says Yiannis Dimitrakopoulos, a 75-year-old pensioner queuing for logs. Dozens of people wait patiently in their cars for their turn. “We try to get as much wood as we can. […]

US calls Erdogan threats to Greece ‘unhelpful’

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States on Tuesday called Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s warnings to Greece over sea disputes “unhelpful” and urged the two NATO allies to settle differences diplomatically. “At a time when Russia has again invaded a sovereign European state, statements that could raise tensions between NATO allies are particularly unhelpful,” a State Department spokesperson said when asked about Erdogan’s remarks, without naming him. “The United States continues to encourage […]

Saudi prince to sign deal for ‘cheaper energy’ in Greece

by Helene COLLIOPOULOU with Robbie COREY-BOULET in Riyadh Agence France-Presse ATHENS, Greece (AFP) — Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman announced upcoming bilateral projects on a visit to Greece Tuesday, including for a power cable between both countries to provide Europe with “cheaper renewable energy”. Prince Mohammed landed in Greece on Tuesday on his first Europe trip since the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, and is set to head to France later in the […]

‘Chariots of Fire’ and ‘Blade Runner’ composer Vangelis dies aged 79

  by John HADOULIS “Blade Runner” and “Chariots of Fire” composer Vangelis, the Oscar-winning electronic music pioneer whose distinctive musical style defined a generation of film soundtracks, has died aged 79, Greece’s prime minister said on Thursday. According to several Greek media outlets, Vangelis died of the coronavirus in France where he lived part-time, as well as in London and Athens. “Vangelis Papathanassiou is no longer with us,” Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis tweeted. “The […]

Greece resumes search for ferry fire survivors

CORFU, Greece (AFP) — Greek firefighters and coastguards said Monday they were resuming the search for 10 people still missing from a ferry fire last week in which a truck driver perished. Television footage showed smoke still billowing from the Italian-flagged Euroferry Olympia, more than 72 hours after a fire ripped through the vessel as it sailed from Igoumenitsa in Greece to Brindisi in Italy with nearly 300 people aboard. “It is a very difficult […]

12 missing after Greece ferry fire

by John HADOULIS with Ljubomir MILASIN in Rome ATHENS, Greece (AFP) — Twelve people were missing and two remained trapped after an Italian-flagged ferry caught fire overnight on the Ionian Sea, Greek officials said, as emergency crews raced against the clock to put out the blaze and locate survivors before dark. Divers were being brought in to widen the search for those missing, the Greek coastguard said, after 278 people had been rescued and taken […]

Refugees in Greece face hunger, homelessness despite status

by John Hadoulis Agence France-Presse ATHENS, Greece (AFP) – Two minutes into a Greek jobs fair interview, Hashim, a 21-year-old Afghan refugee, is offered work as a waiter at a swanky Corfu hotel. It’s his ticket out of the grim migrant camp he has called home for the past year, but there’s a caveat: he has to cut his ponytail. “Health and safety protocol,” his interviewer explains. Hashim, who won asylum in Greece a month-and-a-half […]