Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited Turkish-occupied northern Cyprus on Monday and warned “if there are those who want to prevent peace, then we will be forced to implement a different plan.”
According to ekathimerini.com, Erdogan gave this statement during a joint press conference with the Turkish-Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar.
In his comments, Erdogan referred to Greece without naming it and said “those who engage in meaningless armament activities, which are against the balance on the island and in the region, should carefully consider the dangers that these activities will bring.”
“The peace and security of the people on the island means our peace and security,” Erdogan added.
“Over half a century [in Cyprus] has been lost due to the uncompromising and maximalist approaches of the Greek-Cypriot side. No one can afford to lose another 50 years.
“Turkey will continue to resolutely support the rights and interests of Northern Cyprus.”
This is the first trip that Erdogan has made abroad after being re-elected in May. After his visit, Erdogan will travel to Azerbaijan on Tuesday.
The condition of Melbourne man Nick Dinakis is unknown after he was among 35 passengers who rode the ill-fated bus from a wedding in the New South Wales Hunter Valley region, according to the Brisbane Times.
10 people still remain unaccounted for after Sunday night’s fatal wedding bus crash, with other passengers in stable condition in three different hospitals across NSW.
Dinakis, a real estate agent, attended the wedding of Madeleine Edsell and Mitchell Gaffney on Sunday with his partner Darcy Bulman.
The pair was snapped smiling in a photo together at the Wandin Estate venue just hours before the tragedy unfolded.
According to the Herald Sun, Dinakis is not one of the 10 people unaccounted for in the bus crash, but he remained in the Intensive Care Unit on Wednesday morning at the John Hunter Hospital in Newcastle.
Ms Bulman was identified on Tuesday afternoon as the tenth wedding guest who lost her life in the Hunter Valley smash.
Authorities began the grim recovery operation for bodies on Monday afternoon. Photo: NCA NewsWire / Christian Gilles.
Tributes have since flowed for Ms Bulman on social media with friends calling her a “wonderful” person.
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews said the state government would support Victorian families affected by the tragedy, describing it as “absolutely heartbreaking.”
This comes as NSW Police today continue the long process of formally identifying the victims of the fatal bus crash.
The bus driver, 58-year-old Brett Andrew Button, has also been charged with 10 counts of dangerous driving occasioning death and one count of negligent driving occasioning death.
Τhousands of visitors came together over the long weekend for the 2023 Greek GleNTi on the Darwin Esplanade in the Northern Territory.
The festivities included live Greek music, delicious food, traditional Greek dancing performances, and three-on-three basketball games, while this year’s theme was the Dodecanese Islands.
Greek dancing. All photos copyright Gina Tsogas.
In its 33rd year, the festival has established itself as a major multicultural event in the NT and proved it again this year.
The President of the Greek Orthodox Community of North Australia (GOCNA), Nick Poniris, told The Herald Sun that GleNTi brought the experience of Greece to the foreshore of Darwin Harbour.
More than 40.000 visitors were expected at the festivalThere was Greek food and dancing.
“The food is done traditionally as it has been done generations before us,” Mr Poniris said. “It’s all family fun and affordable and is a great event for locals and interstate guests.”
“This really is one of the premier events in the Greek calendar Australia-wide.”
Stalls and attendees
Each food stall represented a traditional part of Greek food that’s prepared and delivered how it used to be in the old country. In fact, more than 10 tonnes of food were prepared for the event.
Profits from the community-run festival go back to the GOCNA to help support soccer clubs and other community groups.
Yannis Markopoulos was part of a very big chapter in the history of Greek music as he inspired a new musical movement where he masterfully combined the traditional with classical and modern sounds.
Markopoulos was prolific writer and he composed, during his long career, works covering a wide range of music from art music and orchestral pieces to operas, oratorios and music for theater and cinema.
He was born in 1939 in Heraklion, Crete. His father is Georgios Markopoulos, former prefect of Lasithi and his mother is Irini Aeraki from Sitia.
He spent his childhood in Ierapetra, where he took his first music lessons in theory and the violin. His first influences came from local music, as well as from classical music, the music of the wider eastern Mediterranean, and especially of nearby Egypt.
Yannis Markopoulos
In 1956, Markopoulos continued his musical studies at the Athens Conservatory, with the composer Georgios Sklavos and the violin teacher Joseph Bustidui. At the same time, he was admitted to Panteion University for social and philosophical studies while also composing for theatre and cinema.
Musical career:
In 1963, Markopoulos won an award for his music in Mikres Aphrodites by Nikos Koundouros at the Thessaloniki Film Festival, and in the same year his musical works Theseas (dance drama), Hiroshima (ballet suite) and Three Sketches for Dance were staged by new dance ensembles.
From October 1965 to April 1984, he provided music for all the plays presented by the Barba Mitoussis Puppet Theater. This Puppet Theater finally ended its operation on April 15, 1984.
In 1967, a dictatorship was imposed on Greece and Markopoulos left for London. There he enriched his musical knowledge with the English composer Elisabeth Lutyens.
Yannis Markopoulos
At the same time, he completed the musical composition Behold the Bridegroom, a work which is remembered as one of his most famous pieces.
In London, he also composed the Choruses and the first Pyrrhic dances A, B, C, (out of the 24 he completed in 2001), which were played, in 1968, by the Concertante Orchestra of London at the Queen Elizabeth Hall. He also wrote the music for Shakespeare’s The Tempest, staged by the National Theater of England, directed by David Jones.
Later Life and Death:
In 1969, Markopoulos returned to Athens to contribute with his works to the path for the restoration of democracy, creating a new movement for art and its utility and seeking the deeper unity of man with his natural and social environment.
Markopoulos died on June 10, 2023 after being submitted to the Intensive Care Unit of the Athens General Hospital “Alexandra”.
The Greek composer had been battling cancer for a year and he underwent an operation to treat it, but since his body was particularly weakened, complications arose leading to his death.
Konstantinos Argiros, one of Greece’s most successful artists of his generation, visited the Greek Community of Melbourne (GCM) over the weekend for a conversation with the Board of Management.
Upon his arrival at the Greek Centre, he was greeted by the President of the GCM, Bill Papastergiadis OAM.
Also present were the GCM Vice Presidents Dr Jim Bossinakis and Michael Karamitos, Treasurer A/Prof Marinis Pirpiris, Secretary Nick Koukouvitakis, Board Members Helen Hiotis, Tass Sgardelis, Dean Kotsianis along with the Public Relations Manager of the GCM, Antonia Tsamis.
Konstantinos Argiros.
Argiros was briefed on the history of the GCM, as well as its rich multicultural and educational programs. He also had the opportunity to visit the classrooms of the Greek schools at GCM and engage in conversations with the students. Argiros was particularly interested with his tour of the Ancient Greek classes.
Mr Papastergiadis noted in his welcome of Konstantinos Argiros to the Greek Centre on Stefanos Tsitsipas’ sportsmanship. Stefanos visited the Greek Centre during his first major tournament.
Konstantinos Argiros with GCM Board Members.
The President of the GCM then outlined the extensive cultural program at the Greek Centre, which extends throughout the entire year and the wide range of cultural expressions including live music, dance performances, film screenings, lectures, and theatrical productions.
Argiros showed great interest in the activities of the GCM and extended his congratulations to the Board of Directors for their exceptional leadership and dedication in enhancing Greek presence and culture, both locally and internationally.
With another year comes another chance for students in Sydney’s south to form Future Links at Kingsgrove High School’s (KHS) annual careers expo.
Held on Friday, June 9, students from KHS, Kingsgrove North High School, Beverly Hills Girls High School and Wiley Park Girls High School, were given a valuable opportunity to explore career pathways.
Students at the expo. All photos copyright The Greek Herald.Careers advisors offered advice to students.Bags by major sponsors, NSW Ports.
Students visited stalls from apprenticeship companies, education providers and top-tier universities at the event including the University of New South Wales, the University of Technology Sydney, Macquarie University, the Universities Admissions Centre (NSW & ACT), NSW Police Recruitment, Defence Force Recruiting and NECA Training and Apprenticeships.
University stalls at the expo.Stall by the Australian Defence Force.Students.
There were also a number of official proceedings on the day which kick-started with an Acknowledgement of Country by a Year 8 student from KHS, Kaize Kelly.
Master of Ceremonies and KHS Careers Advisor, Artemis Theodoris, then spoke about the success of the annual Future Links Expo.
Artemis Theodoris.
“We feel at Kingsgrove High School that it is never too early to commence conversations with our young people, our students, have them contextualise their learning, exploring careers and pathways available, connecting the skills they are building now, to outcomes for tomorrow,” Ms Theodoris said.
In her speech, the Principal of KHS, Olga Sofo, said students gained valuable knowledge and understanding through their participation in the expo.
Olga Sofo.
“The expo is a stepping stone towards a brighter future,” Ms Sofo told students.
“It is an occasion to dream big, to expand your horizons, and to ignite the fire within you. Remember that success is not merely a product of talent, but also of exploration, perseverance, and the ability to make informed choices.”
Official guests, parents and students.Sophie Cotsis MP.
On the day, a number of other official guests then gave speeches including the NSW Minister for Industrial Relations, Work Health and Safety, Sophie Cotsis; Jonathan Lafforgue from the NSW PORTS Operations and Environment Division; the Rel Deputy Secretary of the Department of Education, Deborah Summerhayes; and KHS Alumni 2020, Jason Ye.
Tennis player Nick Kyrgios is going to make his return to action in Stuttgart, Germany, seven months after his last match.
Kyrgios, who has not played a singles game since October, will aim to get time on the grass ahead of next month’s return to Wimbledon.
He faces Chinese Wu Yibing on Tuesday in Germany (early morning Wednesday AEST) in the opening round of a tournament in which he lines up as eighth seed.
“I wouldn’t say it was major surgery, but I had quite a serious surgery on my knee,” Kyrgios said ahead of his return.
“It’s taken me about five months to get back to even playing, moving and [ready to play] against these players.”
Kyrgios added that he is building his fitness ahead of this year’s Wimbledon competition.
“I’m coming back at a tournament [where] I’ve done really well in the past, played some amazing matches,” he said. “I’m super-excited to be here again and to get out there and play.”
Australian soccer’s governing body is taking a cut from bets placed on games at all levels in the country, from international blockbusters to amateur suburban club competitions, ABC News has reported.
This revelation comes despite the fact that most sporting codes only permit punters to bet on the two highest tiers of the competition.
According to a secret agreement seen by the ABC‘s Four Corners program, Football Australia gets either 1 percent of every bet placed in Australia on a soccer game or 15 percent of the bookmaker’s profit — whichever is higher.
South Springvale Football Club plays in the fifth-tier Victorian State League 1 competition. Club President, Jim Simos, told the ABC that news of secret betting was “disturbing.”
“There are people across the world that could be betting on our games that have got no idea who we are. There’s got to be a limit to it,” Mr Simos said.
Betting companies can access information on these games to set up bets by working with Sportradar, a company using data scouts.
Photo by Markus Spiske.
According to experts, low-level games being available to bet on increases the risk for players being approached with money in order to lose a game on purpose.
Sport integrity specialist, Dr Catherine Ordway, said amateur clubs — like South Springvale — were especially vulnerable.
Mr Simos told the ABC that the club has not been approached by Football Australia to be advised on the matter.
In a statement, Football Australia said it allowed betting on the lower-level competitions “as a strategy to maintain oversight and protect the game from potential integrity threats through information sharing.”
“We’re acutely aware of the potential risks and have a comprehensive integrity framework in place to manage these risks,” it said.
Parishioners from St Andrew’s Greek Orthodox Church in Noarlunga, South Australia have spoken out in defence of Father John Christodoulos amid allegations he led a sordid double life.
According to a report by The Advertiser, Father John allegedly obtained hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations from devout elderly parishioners, while flouting church teachings by regularly meeting other men at night via gay dating and chat app, Grindr.
Parishioners at St Andrew’s – the parish he served since 2020 before moving to a church at Fawkner in Melbourne last week – defended Father Christodoulos on Sunday in the face of these allegations.
“He’s a good person,” one parishioner told The Advertiserafter the Sunday service at the church in Noarlunga.
Father John Christodoulos.
Fellow priest at the Noarlunga church, Father Mark, said he was “in shock” at the allegations, but denied they were true as Father Christodoulos’ behaviour was “always appropriate.”
“If someone is gay you cannot hide it,” he said and added that if the allegations were true, Father Christodoulos “would be disordained.”
These comments came after a spokesman for Archbishop Makarios of Australia confirmed to The Advertiser that the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia was “not aware of the allegations,” but would be conducting an internal investigation into them. The spokesman said the investigation will be confidential.
Father Christodoulos has not responded to the allegations.
New Democracy leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis visited the Dodecanese island of Leros ahead of the June 25 elections and said to supporters that Greece needs a strong government to ensure that the foreign policy it has pursued towards Turkey in recent years, will be continued.
According to ekathimerini.com, Mitsotakis expressed his desire to convey a “message of friendship” to Greece’s Aegean neighbour, saying that “we are not destined to live in perpetual tension with Turkey.”
He stressed that a solution to the country’s main dispute with Turkey, which revolves around the delimitation of the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and the continental shelf in the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean, can only be achieved through good neighbourly relations and in accordance with international law.
Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Leros island. Photo: iefimerida
He said that no Greek Prime Minister, including himself, is willing to discuss issues that lie beyond the agenda of Greek-Turkish relations, such as the demilitarisation of the islands, sovereignty, and sovereign rights.
“We are well aware that a country’s foreign policy does not undergo sudden transformations. While we are pleased to have witnessed a reduction in tensions in recent months regarding violations and transgressions of our airspace, we must not entertain illusions,” Mitsotakis said.
“We extend a hand of friendship, but concurrently, we continue to strengthen our Armed Forces. We remain committed to protecting our borders and forging strong alliances that bolster the geopolitical standing of our homeland.”
