Athens News Agency: News in English (PM), 99-07-06

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From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr>

NEWS IN ENGLISH

Athens, Greece, 06/07/1999 (ANA)

MAIN HEADLINES

• Jetfighter pilot succumbs to injuries
• Stratigis resigns as 2004 head
• Former first lady's health improves
• Police continue checking for illegal immigrants
• Greece to fight to keep EU agency in Thessaloniki
• Equity prices end moderately lower
• Weather
• Foreign Exchange

NEWS IN DETAIL

The co-pilot of a Hellenic Air Force F-5 training jet that crash landed on a highway off Thessaloniki airport Monday died at dawn today of injuries sustained in the crash, a national defence ministry spokesman said. The plane's trainee pilot, 25-year-old Second Lt. Panayotis Drivas, died yesterday en route to a nearby hospital. A team of Air Force experts are examining the jet's wreckage and other clues to establish the causes of the crash.

Stratigis resigns as 2004 head

Stratis Stratigis, the head of the Athens 2004 organising committee has resigned, government spokesman Dimitris Reppas announced on Tuesday. Stratigis had cited personal reasons as the motivation behind his resignation, Reppas added. Prime Minister Costas Simitis appointed Stratigis, a former New Democracy and Democratic Renewal Party MP, to head the organising committee in January 1998.

Former first lady's health improves

Doctors at the Onassion Cardiology Centre reported on Tuesday that former first lady Margaret Papandreou was making an impressive recovery from an acute heart attack a day earlier. Doctors said that they were still discussing the option of surgery but that her condition had improved markedly and was improving steadily. Papandreou was listed in a critical but stable condition when she was admitted on Monday.

Police continue checking for illegal immigrants

Greek police detained about 500 suspected illegal immigrants as they continued surprise identity paper checks around Attica for a third day in a row. Most of those detained were Albanian nationals. Police have said that those found to have legitimate residency papers will be released. Those who are found to be in Greece illegally will be deported; if they are wanted for any crimes, they will be held to face charges.Government spokesman Dimitris Reppas dismissed charges that the police were conducting a "pogrom" on illegal immigrants. "The aim of the operation is to detect those who do not have legitimate residency papers so that they may be returned to their countries of origin," he said.

Greece to fight to keep EU agency in Thessaloniki

Greece said on Tuesday it would put up a fight to prevent the European Union reneging on its decision to base its agency for Balkans reconstruction in the Greek city of Thessaloniki. Government spokesman Dimitris Reppas confirmed on Tuesday that there were "circles in the European Union" trying to move the agency to Pristina. European Union leaders meeting in Rio de Janeiro last week decided to base its agency for reconstruction in Kosovo in the northern Greek port of Thessaloniki.

Equity prices end moderately lower

Equity prices ended Tuesday's session moderately lower reversing an eight- day rally which pushed the market 11.60 percent higher to new records on Monday. The general index ended 0.81 percent lower at 4,314.70 points after surging to an intra-day high of 4,421 points early in the session. Traders said a new record fall in the euro/dollar rate, which undermined European bond markets including Greece's, led many investors to take early profits. Turnover was 187.764 billion drachmas with 27,620,532 shares changing hands.

WEATHER

FOREIGN EXCHANGE

Tuesday's rates (buying)
U.S. dollar          314.821
Pound sterling       496.417
Japanese yen (100)   257.295
French franc          49.118
German mark          164.734
Italian lira (100)    16.640
Irish Punt           409.099
Belgian franc          7.987
Finnish mark          54.189
Dutch guilder        146.204
Danish kr.            43.327
Austrian sch.         23.414
Spanish peseta         1.936
Swedish kr.           37.081
Norwegian kr.         39.924
Swiss franc          200.632
Port. Escudo           1.607
Can. dollar          215.066
Aus. dollar          209.818
Cyprus pound         557.603
Euro                 322.192

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