At least seven flights and a cruise ship in Europe received bomb threats on Tuesday, causing disruption at airports, and no devices were discovered. Two flights to Warsaw, two to Sofia, two to Rome and one to Murcia airport in Spain were targeted; an airport in Warsaw was briefly shut and the Italian Air Force accompanied one of the flights to Rome. The UK government described the incidents as “malicious hoax threats,” and authorities from various countries will cooperate to assess whether this was a coordinated action designed to disrupt airspace. The Panama-flagged cruise ship Crown Iris, preparing to depart the Greek port of Syros for Haifa, was searched by a bomb disposal team and had 940 passengers and 597 crew members on board. According to Greek media, the captain received a warning directly by radio saying that an explosive device had been placed on the hull below the waterline; an initial search found no suspicious objects, and a second, more thorough inspection by the Coast Guard’s underwater missions unit was expected.
Greece arrested two Greek men and an Albanian national suspected of stealing copper gas pipes from a building, causing a leak that led to a deadly explosion in central Athens last month — six people were killed in the September 25 blast in the tourist district of Plaka, four of them Americans, authorities said, as cited by Reuters in a text republished by Marketscreener.
Libya’s eastern parliament, the House of Representatives aligned with Haftar in Benghazi, ratified the 2019 maritime deal with Turkey on October 20, and the country’s two rival governments now recognize the boundary that runs between Crete and Cyprus, according to OilPrice. The line leaves Greek islands in the area with no sea beyond their territorial waters, and Ankara is pursuing the same kind of deal with Damascus.
Israel and Greece held a joint naval exercise in the Mediterranean this week, practicing the identification and neutralization of maritime threats, sailing as a combined force and sinking a hostile vessel with missile fire, according to the Jerusalem Post.
Libya’s eastern parliament unanimously approved a maritime agreement with Turkey on Tuesday establishing a direct maritime economic corridor between the two countries. Greece condemned the approval and called the deal a violation of international law.
Greeceʼs Parliament approved on Friday a ban on the use of social media platforms for children under 15 over health and safety concerns, according to The Hindu. The ban comes into force on January 1, 2027, according to Reuters.
Egypt’s Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday that the memorandum signed between Turkey and the government in eastern Libya led by Khalifa Haftar “is null and void, carries no legal effect, and that its ratification by the Libyan House of Representatives entails no legal consequences whatsoever for Egypt”.
On Tuesday, Libya’s eastern government approved the agreement with Turkey establishing a maritime boundary between the two countries despite the presence of Greek islands, particularly Crete, between their coastlines. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan rejected the criticism from Egypt, Greece and Israel.
Thousands of students and teachers took to the streets across Greece on Wednesday to demand higher state funding for education, better facilities and less-crowded classrooms, according to Reuters. About 10,000 demonstrators, including school and university students, rallied peacefully in central Athens and its suburbs, according to police. G1 also reported protests by students, teachers and public servants in the country.
Libya's eastern parliament approved a maritime boundaries deal with Turkey on Tuesday, drawing swift condemnation from Greece, which called it a violation of international law, Reuters reported in a text republished by ThePrint. Athens said the deal “remains illegal, null and void, contravenes international law of the sea, and infringes upon the sovereign rights of states in the region.” In the same report, Turkey's foreign ministry welcomed the Libyan parliament's decision, saying the agreement respected the mutual rights and interests of both countries under international law and the principles of equity.
Twelve migrants died on Monday while attempting to cross the Aegean Sea, six of them whose bodies were found after their boat collided with a police vessel, authorities told The Hindu. A baby and four women were among the six people who died off the island of Lesbos in the collision, a coast guard official told AFP. The other six dead — five men and a woman — were on a small boat that capsized off the island of Samos; another 14 people from the boat, one of them a presumed Iranian organiser, were rescued.
The White House asked US Ambassador to Greece Kimberly Guilfoyle to resign, and she left the post on Tuesday, after allegations of bribery, corruption and other misconduct, according to ABC News, in a report by The Jerusalem Post. Spokesperson Zacharia confirmed the request: “We have asked Ambassador Guilfoyle to resign. She has been a wonderful asset to the team, and we wish her well,” she said. Guilfoyle denies the allegations, calling them false, and says she will defend her name, her reputation and her integrity.
The White House asked US Ambassador to Greece Kimberly Guilfoyle to resign, according to the Jerusalem Post. White House press secretary Katie Zacharia confirmed the request at a briefing on Tuesday.
President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio are considering firing US ambassador to Greece Kimberly Guilfoyle after a series of reports alleging improper and possibly illegal conduct, according to The Guardian. A senior US official said Sunday that Trump and Rubio are “extremely pissed off” by the reported conduct and will likely decide what action to take this week, after Monday’s Columbus Day holiday, according to the Associated Press. The Wall Street Journal reported that Guilfoyle asked a Trump donor to pay a $100,000 credit card bill shortly before her confirmation hearing, promising him access to administration officials.
Marco Rubio will speak on Wednesday near the Acropolis and call for a renewal of the Western spirit, an inheritance stretching from Athens and Rome to the founding of the American Republic, according to the Associated Press (AP), in a text republished by The Hindu. In Athens to discuss economic, energy and security cooperation with Greece.
Greece has urged the EU to allow member states to temporarily suspend asylum applications during periods of mass migration, according to Al Jazeera. The proposal was submitted to EU interior ministers meeting in Luxembourg on Thursday during the Justice and Home Affairs Council, also according to the broadcaster. Ministers also approved a new return regulation on Thursday allowing member states to establish return hubs outside the EU, also according to Al Jazeera.
Rescue teams have recovered the bodies of six people killed in a building collapse following a blast in the historic centre of Athens, according to local authorities. Documents and belongings found with four of the victims – two men and two women – on Saturday indicated they were United States citizens, according to the Greek state broadcaster Hellenic Broadcasting Corporation (ERT) and other local media. The two-storey building in the tourist district of Plaka collapsed on Friday, and the blast was attributed to a major gas leak by Athens Mayor Haris Doukas.