Greece

Two dead, three missing as rainstorm pounds Greece for second day

ATHENS, Sept 6 (Reuters) - At least two people died and three were missing on Wednesday after torrential rain flooded homes and businesses and destroyed infrastructure in central Greece, the…

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Severe storms cause flooding in Greece, Turkey, Bulgaria, killing 7

Fierce rainstorms have battered neighbouring Greece, Turkey and Bulgaria, triggering flooding that caused at least seven deaths, including those of two holidaymakers swept away by a torrent at a campsite…

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Greece wildfire destroys area bigger than New York City

By Stamos Prousalis and Karolina Tagaris EVROS, Greece/ATHENS (Reuters) - A wildfire burning in northeastern Greece for 11 days has destroyed an area larger than New York City, the European…

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Greece battles Europe’s deadliest fire of the summer for 10th day

Hundreds of Greek firefighters were battling a huge blaze on Monday which has killed at least 20 people over the past ten days, Europe's deadliest wildfire so far this summer…

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Four migrants drown off Greece’s Lesbos island – coast guard

Four migrants drowned off the Greek island of Lesbos while trying to cross the sea from nearby Turkey, the coast guard said on Monday, adding that 18 others were rescued.…

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Eighteen burned bodies, possibly of migrants, found in Greece fires

Eighteen burned bodies, possibly of migrants, were found in a remote, rural area south of the village of Avantas in northern Greece on Tuesday where wildfires have been burning for…

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Dozens of patients evacuated as Greece wildfires burn for fourth day

Dozens of hospital patients were evacuated onto a ferry in the Greek port city of Alexandroupolis early on Tuesday, the fire brigade said, as wildfires in the area raged uncontrolled…

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60 migrants saved from small boats in Aegean Sea

Interceptions have greatly reduced the number of migrant arrivals in Greece, but with intense criticism of potential risk to people following dangerous Mediterranean migration routes. Greek authorities on Saturday rescued…

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Greece offers free holiday to tourists who fled Rhodes fires

ATHENS, Aug 2 (Reuters) - Greece said on Wednesday it will offer a week-long free stay on Rhodes in 2024 to tourists whose vacation was cut short by wildfires that…

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Tourists flock to the Mediterranean as if the climate crisis isn’t happening. This year’s heat and fire will force change

Thousands of people on the beach. Children reportedly falling off evacuation boats. Panic. People fleeing with the clothes on their backs. It felt like “the end of the world”, according…

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Greek minister resigns after going on holiday while wildfires rage

Greece's minister for citizen protection resigned after he was spotted on a holiday as wildfires spread across the country. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis accepted the resignation of the minister responsible…

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Greek wildfires die down after burning for nearly two weeks

ATHENS, July 28 (Reuters) - Wildfires in Greece abated on Friday after burning for nearly two weeks but emergency services worked to prevent new flare-ups in the central part of…

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Greece PM says climate change ‘not an excuse’ as wildfires burn

By Alexandros Avramidis and Stamos Prousalis Death toll from wildfires rises to five Greek PM says more steps needed to fight climate change Rekindles in central Greece force more evacuations…

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Most unaccompanied children failed to win asylum in Greece, NGO says

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Fewer than a third of unaccompanied children succeeded in winning asylum in Greece last year, with the rest of the applications rejected or in limbo, aid agency…

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Greece sees some wildfire respite, though stubborn blazes rage on

ATHENS, July 26 (Reuters) - Wildfires raging across Greece for more than a week abated on Wednesday, though firefighters still battled on several fronts to contain blazes that have killed…

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Wildfires bring death and destruction to sun-scorched Mediterranean

Wildfires hit Portugal, Spain, Greece, Algeria, Croatia, Italy Firefighting plane crashes in Greece Tunisia suffers heatwave, power cuts hit Malta Mediterranean region 'climate change hot-spot' By Fedja Grulovic and Lamine…

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WATCH: Plane fighting wildfires in Greece crashes with two aboard

A plane fighting wildfires in Greece crashed on Tuesday and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis warned of tough days ahead with blazes destroying homes and forcing the evacuation of thousands…

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Tourists flee wildfires on Greek island of Rhodes

Thousands of tourists and residents fleeing wildfires on the Greek island of Rhodes took refuge in schools and shelters on Sunday, with many evacuated on private boats as flames threatened…

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UPDATED: Jet2, TUI cancel flights to Rhodes because of wildfire

Jet2 cancelled all flights and holidays to Rhodes on Sunday and holiday group TUI has cancelled all outbound flights to the Greek island up to and including on Tuesday because…

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Wildfire on Greek island of Rhodes forces hundreds to evacuate

ATHENS, July 22 (Reuters) - A wildfire raged uncontrolled on the Greek island of Rhodes on Saturday, forcing hundreds of people to flee affected villages and beaches, authorities said. Coastguard vessels…

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Wildfires in Greece burn for fifth day as another heatwave hits

By Fedja Grulovic ATHENS, July 21 (Reuters) - Greece struggled to contain a wildfire west of Athens that burnt forestland for a fifth day on Friday as another heatwave hit…

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Wildfires slowly abate in Greece but temperatures rise

ATHENS, July 20 (Reuters) - Wildfires across Greece slowly abated on Thursday after razing swathes of forest and dozens of homes in the past days, but temperatures rose, threatening new…

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Staff at Athens tourist sites protest against heatwave working conditions

Staff at the Acropolis, Greece’s top tourist attraction, and other ancient sites in the country will stop work for four hours a day from Thursday in protest at working conditions…

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Wildfires northwest of Athens rage into the night, burn homes

Wildfires rage uncontrolled for second day north of Athens Strong winds rekindle flames in Corinth area PM cuts short trip to Brussels, returns home Greece requests help from EU countries…

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Wildfire rages southeast of Greek capital, villagers told to evacuate

Villagers were ordered to leave their homes southeast of Athens as a wildfire fanned by strong winds burned vegetation nearby, authorities said. The blaze was raging close to buildings in…

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Greek parliament gives backing to new government’s four-year plan

ATHENS (Reuters) - Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis's new government won a key vote in parliament on Saturday after promising to rebuild the country's credit rating, create jobs, raise wages…

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Greek unemployment drops to 10.8% in May

June 30 (Reuters) - Greece's jobless rate stood at 10.8% in May, down from an upwardly revised 11.3% in April, data from statistics service ELSTAT showed on Friday. Seasonally adjusted…

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Greece’s Tsipras resigns as Syriza party leader

ATHENS, June 29 (Reuters) - Greece's Alexis Tsipras resigned on Thursday as leader of the leftist Syriza party following a heavy defeat in a national election on Sunday, a source…

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UPDATED: Mitsotakis sworn in as Greek PM, promises more jobs and ‘big changes’

By Lefteris Papadimas and Karolina Tagaris ATHENS, June 26 (Reuters) - Kyriakos Mitsotakis promised to rebuild Greece's credit rating, create jobs, raise wages and boost state revenues after he was…

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Greece’s election on Sunday: how the system works

ATHENS (Reuters) - Following is the political backdrop to Greece's parliamentary election on Sunday. Opinion polls show former Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis' New Democracy party winning by a wide margin…

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Greek conservatives appear set to win Sunday election tinged by tragedy

Conservatives seen winning June 25 poll Vote tinged by migrant disaster off Greece on June 14 Row over shipwreck overshadows campaign By Angeliki Koutantou ATHENS, (Reuters) - Former Prime Minister…

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The Greek migrant shipwreck is another preventable tragedy at the borders of Europe

The Mediterranean route between Libya and Italy has been described as the “world’s most dangerous maritime crossing”. This was proven once again last week in the tragic shipwreck of a…

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At least 209 ‘victims’ from Pakistan in Greece boat tragedy

(Reuters) - There were at least 209 Pakistani "victims" on an overloaded boat that capsized and sank in open seas off Greece, data shared with Reuters by a Pakistani investigative…

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Greece boat disaster: 800 were on board, says Pakistan police report

A boat that capsized off the coast of Greece last week was carrying around 800 people, according to an initial investigation by police in Pakistan, which declared a national day…

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Greece boat disaster: 12 Pakistanis among survivors

KARACHI, Pakistan, June 17 (Reuters) - Twelve Pakistanis were among survivors from a boat packed with migrants that capsized off the coast of Greece this week, the Ministry of Foreign…

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Hopes fading as Greece scours migrant shipwreck site for survivors

KALAMATA, Greece, (Reuters) - Rescuers scoured the seas off Greece on Thursday following a shipwreck that killed at least 78 migrants, as hopes of survivors dwindled and fears grew that…

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Updated: Survivors of migrant boat sinking go to Greece, over 500 feared dead

Updated 1320 Fresh media reports are indicating that up to 500 persons could have lost their lives in the latest Mediterranean tragedy after survivors told authorities that between 400 and…

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Greek unemployment rises to 11.2% in April

June 1 (Reuters) - Greece's jobless rate stood at 11.2% in April, up from an upwardly revised 11.1% in March, data from statistics service ELSTAT showed on Thursday. Seasonally adjusted…

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Greek vote shows public mellowing from crisis-era anger

By Michele Kambas and Renee Maltezou Leftist Syriza took just 20.1% to come distant second Party led by Yanis Varoufakis did not get a single seat Analysts say electorate has…

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UPDATED: Greece appoints caretaker PM ahead of June repeat election

By Lefteris Papadimas ATHENS, May 24 (Reuters) - Greece's president appointed a caretaker prime minister on Wednesday to form a government that will lead the country to a repeat election…

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Greece’s leftists to seek second vote instead of coalition government

Greece's leftists will receive an official mandate on Tuesday to form a coalition government after an inconclusive national election, but are expected to seek a second vote instead. The conservative…

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UPDATED: Greek PM eyes new election on June 25 after failing to win majority

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Monday he will not seek to form a coalition government following this weekend's election, paving the way for a second vote in June…

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Greek PM Mitsotakis says has won decisive mandate to govern

Greek Prime Minister claimed victory in a parliamentary election on Sunday, saying he had a mandate to form a strong autonomous government. Early official results indicated on Sunday that Mitsotakis'…

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Greek ruling New Democracy takes lead in vote-exit poll

ATHENS, May 21 (Reuters) - Greece's ruling conservative New Democracy party was leading in a general election on Sunday, but looked set to fall short of an absolute majority to form a…

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Political parties in Greece vie for votes of ‘lost generation’

By Karolina Tagaris ATHENS (Reuters) - Politicians vying for votes in Greece's election on Sunday have turned to YouTube and TikTok to win over a younger generation who have long…

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Greece extends energy relief measures to end-September

ATHENS, May 18 (Reuters) - The Greek government has extended by three months to the end of September some of the measures it took last year to help households and…

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Greek president approves PM request for May 21 election

ATHENS, April 22 (Reuters) - Greece's president approved a request by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Saturday to dissolve parliament and hold elections on May 21, as the country gears…

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Greek parliament votes to ban extreme-right party from elections

Greek MPs voted to ban the extreme-right Greeks-National Party from running in elections, aiming to block its members linked to the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn criminal organization from entering parliament. The…

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Greek EU-harmonised inflation eases to 5.4% y/y in March

April 10 (Reuters) - Greece's annual EU-harmonised inflation slowed to 5.4% in March from 6.5% in February, data showed on Monday. The cost of housing dropped by 10.4%, while prices…

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Israel says signs $400 mln deal to sell Greece anti-tank missiles

JERUSALEM, April 10 (Reuters) - Israel signed a 1.44 billion shekel ($400 million) deal to sell Spike anti-tank missiles to Greece, Israel's Defence Ministry said on Monday, just days after…

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Boat with 400 migrants adrift between Greece and Malta

MILAN, (Reuters) - A vessel with around 400 people on board is adrift between Greece and Malta and is taking on water, support service Alarm Phone said, after a sharp…

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Greece to hold national election on May 21 – PM

Greece will hold a parliamentary election on May 21, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Tuesday. The conservative government's four-year term expires in July. "The country and its citizens need…

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Greece to have elections in May, prime minister says

Greece will hold general elections in May, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said in a television interview on Tuesday.The conservative government's four-year term expires in July, and Mitsotakis was widely expected to…

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Greece to increase minimum wage again, before election

ATHENS, March 17 (Reuters) - The Greek government will raise the minimum wage next month, the third rise in more than a year, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Friday,…

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Greeks walk off the job to protest over deadly train crash

By Renee Maltezou and Alkis Konstantinidis ATHENS, March 16 (Reuters) - Flights to and from Greece were grounded and ships remained docked at ports on Thursday, as Greek workers walked…

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Greek PM apologises for deadly train crash, promises to fix railways

ATHENS, March 9 (Reuters) - Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis apologised on Thursday for a train crash that killed 57 people, promising to fix long-standing deficiencies in the railway sector…

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Greece train disaster exposes rail network neglect

On Feb. 7, Greek rail workers issued a statement complaining about yet another minor accident on the network earlier this year and warning a more serious incident was all but…

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