Greece

Greece adds more countries where visitors will be required obligatory testing

Visitors to Greece arriving from Sweden, Belgium, Spain, the Netherlands and the Czech Republic will need proof they have tested negative for the novel coronavirus to gain entry, the government…

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Greece registers highest daily tally of COVID 19 cases

Greece reported 203 new cases of COVID 19 on Sunday, its highest daily tally since the start of the outbreak in the country, a government official said. The latest jump…

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Baby among seven killed as thunderstorms hit Greece

At least seven people were killed when torrential rain and thunderstorms caused flash flooding on the Greek island of Evia over the weekend, officials said. Three of the victims, including…

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Floods in Greece

A Greek Orthodox priest walks in front of a flooded 18th century church in the village of Kavalari, Thessaloniki, Greece, after heavy rains hit the greater Langadas area in Greece.…

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Maltese visiting Greece will have to present negative tests before entry

As of August 12, travellers from Malta will have to present proof of a negative molecular test (PCR) result for Covid-19 taken up to 72 hours before their entry to…

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Greek officials concerned at amount of young people testing positive

Greek public health officials are becoming increasingly concerned at the number of young people testing positive for the novel virus. An abrupt increase in cases nationwide is being attributed increasingly…

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Egypt and Greece sign agreement on exclusive economic zone

Egypt and Greece signed an agreement on Thursday designating an exclusive economic zone in the eastern Mediterranean between the two countries, an area containing promising oil and gas reserves, Egyptian…

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Greek unemployment jumps to 17.0% in May, highest in nine months

Greece's jobless rate rose to 17.0% in May from an upwardly revised 15.7% reading in the previous month, data from the country's statistics service ELSTAT showed on Thursday. It was…

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Photo Story: Iraqi asylum seekers repatriated from Greece

Migrants wearing face masks board an airplane bound for Iraq, at the Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport in Athens, Greece, 06 August 2020. According to the Greek Migration and Asylum Ministry,…

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Greece reports new spike in COVID-19 cases

Greece registered 124 additional cases of the coronavirus in its latest medical bulletin, with 15 detected at airports and other entry points. Athens and Thessaloniki each had 22 new infections…

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Greece reports spike in coronavirus cases

Greece’s top scientific adviser warned against complacency on coronavirus after the country reported its highest single-day increase in infections in weeks. Authorities reported 121 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday after…

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Greece opens its first underwater museum

Greece has inaugurated its first underwater museum, a trove of fifth-century BC amphorae labelled the “Parthenon of shipwrecks”, off the coast of Alonissos island in the western Aegean. The site…

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Greece makes masks compulsory on ship decks

Greece will make mask-wearing compulsory on the decks of ferries sailing to its islands, extending the requirement beyond interior spaces after a recent spike in coronavirus infections, the government's spokesman…

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Greece reopens six of its ports for cruise ships

Greece on Saturday reopened six of its main ports to cruise ships for the first time in the coronavirus-shortened tourism season, but no ships are expected before three weeks. In…

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Greece extends mask-wearing requirement as coronavirus infections flare up

Greece will make mask-wearing compulsory in all indoor public spaces and also in outdoor spaces where proper social distancing cannot be observed, its deputy civil protection minister said on Friday,…

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Greece to require negative coronavirus test for entry from Bulgaria, Romania

Visitors to Greece arriving by air from Bulgaria and Romania will need to provide proof they have tested negative for coronavirus to gain entry, Greece’s Civil Protection authority announced. The…

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Greece and Turkey engage in strong exchange over conversion of Hagia Sophia

Greece and Turkey had another acrimonious exchange on Saturday over the conversion of the former church of Hagia Sophia in Istanbul into a mosque. eKhatimerini reports that the Turkish Foreign Ministry…

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Greece wildfires force further evacuations and night-long battles

Firefighters and water-dropping aircraft have been battling for several days to contain a large wildfire in southern Greece that forced evacuations and night-long battles to save homes. Seven villages and…

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Greek Cup final postponed following fears of fan violence

The Greek Cup final has been postponed because of fears of organized fan violence after police found petrol bombs and wooden bats hidden near the stadium where the match was…

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Forest fire continues to burn near Greek seaside village

Greek firefighters continue to battle a wind-driven forest fire that burned through pine forest and forced the evacuation of hundreds of people near the seaside village of Kechries in the…

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Greek firefighters battle large forest fire in Kechries

Greek firefighters brought in reinforcements from across the country on Wednesday to help control a large forest fire fanned by strong winds near the seaside village of Kechries in the…

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Greece calls for sanctions against Turkey over disputed gas explorations

Greece said there should be no alternative but European Union sanctions against Turkey if Ankara does not back down on disputed attempts to explore for natural resources in the Mediterranean.…

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Greece’s tourism re-opening results in more infections but no economic gains – POLITICO

POLITICO explains that with tourism making up more than a fifth of the country's economic output and employing around a quarter of its workforce, the Greek government felt it had…

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Photo Story: Archaeological discovery during works in Piraeus

Photos made available by the Greek Ministry of Culture show various phases of archaeologists at an excavation site in a well in Piraeus, Greece, and their findings. During excavation works…

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Greece toughens rules for visitors at Bulgarian border

Greece will allow in visitors through its border with Bulgaria only if they show a negative COVID-19 test, the government announced, as it tries to contain the spread of the…

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Greece to resume direct flights with Britain from July 15

Greece is allowing direct flights from Britain on July 15, the Greek government said on Monday, as Athens tries to salvage its all-important summer tourist season. Greece lifted restrictions on…

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Greece bans Serbian visitors in bid to contain coronavirus spread during peak tourism season

Greece will not allow Serbian visitors in from July 6 until July 15, the government said on Sunday, as it moved to contain the spread of coronavirus during its peak…

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Greece PM says won’t accept strict EU conditions on COVID-19 aid – FT

Greece will not accept strict European Union conditions on the use of the coronavirus emergency aid, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis told the Financial Times newspaper in an interview published on…

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Greece reveals more measures to shield jobs from COVID-19 impact

Greece's economy performed better than others in the euro zone in the first quarter but the hit from coronavirus restrictions in the second and third quarters will be "dramatic", Prime…

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Ryanair resumes flights from Greece after four-month grounding

Low cost carrier Ryanair resumed flights from Athens after a near four-month grounding due to COVID-19 travel restrictions, it announced. A flight from Athens to Rome's Ciampino airport marked the…

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Greece warned to prepare for a “very difficult” tourist season

Greece should prepare for a “very difficult” tourist season, the country’s prime minister has said. Tourism officials say the country – which usually makes around 18.1 billion a year from…

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Greece says it will not allow direct flights from UK, Sweden until July 15

Direct flights from Britain and Sweden to Greece will not be allowed until July 15, Greek authorities said, adding that they would use EU guidelines to determine which countries were…

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Earth tremors rock Rhodes

A second, moderate earthquake hit in the sea area off the Greek island of Rhodes on Monday morning, without causing injuries or damages. According to the Athens’ Geodynamic Institute, the…

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Leaders of Greece, Turkey discuss COVID-19 in rare call

The leaders of Greece and Turkey held a rare phone conversation, after months of increasing tension between the two neighbouring countries. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Turkish President Recep…

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Photo Story: Passenger arrivals in Athens in times of COVID-19

A passenger from an international flight coming from Rome, is tested for coronavirus, during her arrival at the Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport in Athens, Greece. Greece reopened its main airports…

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Greek PM wins tourism pledge from Israel

Greece and Israel pledged on Tuesday to work toward a resumption of bilateral tourism in August if coronavirus precautions permit and discussed shared concerns over Turkey's energy exploration in the…

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Greece welcomes foreign visitors, restarts summer tourism

Greece reopened its main airports to more international flights on Monday, hoping to kick-start its vital tourism sector after three months in lockdown. Tourism employs about 700,000 people and accounts…

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Photo Story: Coronavirus testing in Greece

A staff member of the Greek National Public Health Organiztion (EODY), Katerina Trikalioti (L), in protective gear, performs a COVID-19 test on Christoforos Kavassilas on Koufonissi island, Greece. According to…

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Safety is top priority as Greece ready to open to tourists

The safety of tourists is a top priority for Greece as it opens its airports to foreign visitors, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Saturday on a visit to the…

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Thermal cameras installed at Athens and Thessaloniki railway stations

A thermal camera used to detect abnormally high body temperature among passengers arriving at Larissis railway station, in Athens, Greece, 12 June 2020. Greek railway company TRAINOSE began operating the…

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Greece and Italy sign ‘maritime boundaries agreement establishing exclusive economic zone

Greece and Italy signed an agreement on maritime boundaries on Tuesday, establishing an exclusive economic zone between the two countries and resolving longstanding issues over fishing rights in the Ionian Sea. The deal,…

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Greek Orthodox Church says yoga is ‘incompatible’ with Christianity

The powerful Greek Orthodox Church has said that yoga is"absolutely incompatible" with the Christian faith, Yoga has no place "in the life of Christians," the governing body of the Church…

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Greek hotels reopen to an uncertain future

Greece allowed year-round hotels to open on Monday, restarting its vital tourism sector hobbled by weeks of lockdown, although business remained quiet with international flights from its main airports only set…

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Greece suspends Qatar Airways flights due to CoVid-19 contagion among passengers

Greece on Tuesday announced they were suspending flights to and from Qatar until mid-June, after 12 out of 91 passengers in a Qatar Airways flight that landed in Athens on…

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Greece to test arrivals from airports on EU high-risk list

Greece said it will conduct coronavirus tests on visitors arriving from airports deemed high-risk by the European Union's aviation safety agency EASA when it opens its airports to tourism traffic on…

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Greece announces package of measures to support air transport sector

Greece announced a package of measures amounting to 115 million euros to support the country's air transport sector, hit hard by the lockdown to contain the spread of the new coronavirus…

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Greece to welcome Germans, Cypriots, Israelis in first wave of visitors

Greece will allow travellers from around two dozen countries including Germany, Cyprus and Israel to visit from mid-June without having to be quarantined, government officials said, part of a gradual…

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Photo Story: Chains of salps along Greek coastline

Salp chains, small transparent gelatinous blobs, cover the coastline of Corinth, Peloponnese, Greece Salps look like swarms of baby jellyfish are groups of zooplankton. Salps serve as food for whales…

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Greece to reopen tourism season in June

The Greek tourist season will kick off next month, with international charter flights to popular locations resuming in July, the prime minster says. "The tourism period begins on 15 June,…

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5.8 magnitude earthquake registered in the Central Mediterranean Sea (UPDATE)

5.7 magnitude earthquake was registered in the Mediterranean Sea, 224 km SW of Methoni, Greece . The earthquake was registered at 23:43 UTC Time (01.43 Malta Time). The earthquake hypo central depth…

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Greek economy to shrink up to 13% due to coronavirus

Greece's economy may shrink 10 to 13% this year following a lockdown imposed to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus, but the government will take steps to mitigate the…

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Greece is considering VAT tax cut for restaurants and cafes to reboot tourism

Greece is considering a sales tax cut for restaurants and cafes as part of a broader plan to reboot the tourism-dependent economy hammered by the coronavirus lockdown. The tax on…

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Archaeological sites re-open in Greece

The archaeological sites in Greece opened on Monday to visitors, following the easing of measures against the spread of the coronavirus disease. More than 200 archaeological sites in the country…

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Greeks return to church after weeks of lockdown

Thousands of Greeks returned to church on Sunday after weeks of staying away as a ban on mass gatherings to curb the spread of the coronavirus was eased. It…

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Greeks go to the beach after re-opening as temperatures soar

Greeks flocked to the seaside on Saturday when more than 500 beaches reopened, as the country sought to walk the fine line between protecting people from COVID-19 while reviving the…

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Migrants stranded in Greece by Covid-19 fly to UK

A group of 50 refugees and asylum seekers flew from Greece to Britain on Monday to reunite with relatives in a transfer that had been held up by the coronavirus…

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Coronavirus takes toll on Greeks’ mental health

Four in 10 Greeks say that their mental health has deteriorated amid the coronavirus pandemic, according to the findings of a study carried out by Sentio Solutions, a Greek…

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