By Amie Ferris-Rotman for reuters.com ATHENS (Reuters) - For self-made businessman Dimitrios, the threats began with a phone call from a man who said they knew where his daughter was. At first the 57-year-old window installer kept quiet about the calls. When his car was torched in front of his house, he hid the blackened metal shell from his family. But when he awoke to his wife's screams at a huge banner t ...

EPA photo The most important statistic that came out of Greece this week had nothing to do with the economy. The EU said that 300 migrants are illegally crossing the border from Turkey every single day. Frontex, the EU Border Control agency which has monitors on the Greek-Turkish border, said that the total number for the month of October was 9,600, representing "an absolute monthly record". It describes th ...

By George Friedman at  STRATFOR Everyone is wondering about the next disaster to befall Europe. Italy is one focus; Spain is also a possibility. But these crises are already under way. Instead, the next crisis will be political, not in the sense of what conventional politician is going to become prime minister, but in the deeper sense of whether Europe’s political elite can retain power, or whether new poli ...

It is a nation built on the abolition of slavery, but there are at least 40,000 slaves in the US today. In the opening episode of Slavery: A 21st Century Evil, Al Jazeera's Rageh Omaar investigates food chain slavery, considered the easiest form of slavery to stamp out, in the US. The US has been leading the global fight against modern slavery. But, according to conservative estimates, there are between 40, ...

By James Gallagher Health reporter, BBC News Researchers have issued a warning about the health of people in Greece in the wake of the financial crisis. Writing in The Lancet, they said cuts to hospitals' budgets meant they were being overstretched. More people were reporting "bad health" and HIV infections were on the increase, the authors warned. While public health experts said the picture was "concernin ...

A year ago he tried to set him self on fire in a branch of Piraeus Bank in the corner with Tsimiski and National Defense in Thessaloniki. Today he returned... The 54 year old shouted that he was drawing in debts and that they where trying to burn him alive, along with his family. He was holding a petrol tank which he used to pour petrol on him and, later, managed to set him self on fire! Policemen from the ...

By Apostolis Fotiadis ATHENS, Oct 2, 2011 (IPS) - Every working day a long queue of people forms outside the State Translation Service in Thission in downtown Athens from early in the morning. Most are youngsters processing documents they need to leave Greece for study or work. Many move on to queue later outside embassies for visas. These are signs on the street of the emigration wave sweeping Greece. As G ...

Inthe recent days repeated racist attacks take place in various neighborhoods of Athens. Slogan written outside of Aghios Panteleimonas church "Foreigners Out of Greece", "Go to Hell" • Last night, 2 Afghan immigrants were attacked outside their home. When they saw a group of thugs approaching, scared they tried to run away but did not manage to escape. The gangs attacked them leaving one stabbed! The victi ...

As Greece's children are forced to make do with photocopies instead of books, the true cost of this debt crisis is clear Aris Chatzistefanou and Katerina Kitidi for guardian.co.uk Last week marked the beginning of the school year in Greece. Children's faces were full of smiles but their schoolbags were empty, since the state didn't manage to distribute the school books. Instead, the government resorted to l ...

by wikileaks. All of these factors have contributed to a general feeling that the carefree days of generous salaries and easy borrowing have passed, and that the future looks dim and uncertain. Already Eurostat estimates that 20 percent of the Greek population lives under poverty levels, the highest rate in the Eurozone together with Spain. A European eurobarometer report publicized in early February reveal ...