Eighteen civilians executed by the Nazis on Crete during World War II have been identified 83 years later through DNA analysis conducted by the Comparative Genomics Lab at the Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology of the Foundation for Research and Technology – Hellas (FORTH).
According to ekathimerini, in an article of Tassoula Karaiskaki, it is mentioned that the 18 male victims, aged 16-60 from the village of Adele, were executed on June 2, 1941 after the Battle of Crete by soldiers of the Third Reich on the orders of the German paratrooper commander General Kurt Student.
The research director of the project, Nikos Poulakakis, told Kathimerini that the Nazis gave the victims shovels, and their families believed they were being taken to a concentration camp or forced labor, but they were taken to the area of Sarakina and forced to dig their own mass grave.
Their relatives found their remains several days later and moved them to another grave. In 1960 the remains were exhumed but they could not be individually identified.
A vintage Boeing plane belonging to Greece’s former national carrier Olympic Airways is now on show in Glyfada region of Attika, in Greece.
The iconic “Mount Olympus” aircraft has been restored and opened as a tourist attraction at the former Athens airport in the upscale Glyfada district, part of the Athenian Riviera.
Acquired by Greek shipping tycoon Aristotelis Onassis in the late 1960s, this plane was among six Boeing aircraft he purchased, contributing to Olympic Airways’ popularity. Founded by Onassis in 1957, Olympic Airways was known for its excellent service and iconic six-ring logo, connecting Greece with the world until it ceased operations in 2009. It was succeeded by Olympic Air, which continues its legacy under Aegean Airlines.
Photo: Infrastructure and Transport Ministry/via AMNA
“This majestic aircraft, now a tourist attraction, will highlight our nation’s rich aviation heritage and become a significant landmark for the municipality. It is not only an exhibit but a living monument of Greek aviation history,” said Infrastructure and Transport Minister Christos Staikouras at the opening ceremony this week.
Staikouras said Olympic Airways contributed significantly to the promotion of Greece worldwide, to the growth of the Greek economy and of tourism.
Aviation, he said, was one of the first industries to attract foreign investment in Greece after WWII. The minister went on to add that the initiative is aimed at boosting local tourism and stimulating the economy, while also preserving a very important part of Greece’s cultural heritage.
The exhibition is organised by Zela Aviation in collaboration with the Elliniko-Argyroupoli Municipality.
Sydney Olympic women’s team climbed to the top of the National Premier League Women’s standings on Thursday night after defeating Macarthur Rams 2 – 1 at Peter Moore Field.
The match started aggressively from Macarthur’s side, closing down Sydney Olympic tightly and marking strongly.
Sydney Olympic gradually balanced the game, making the opposing team close its area. Their efforts paid off when in the 40th minute, the women’s team earned a corner which Koulizakis executed with mathematical precision and “hung” the ball over the opposing goalkeeper, making it 1-0 for Sydney Olympic.
Macarthur pushed back and began to pressure Sydney Olympic in their area, and just five minutes later in the 45th minute, Brown equalised, bringing the game level.
Sydney Olympic’s Peak put the Blue and Whites ahead again in the 47th minute with another goal.
In the second half, Macarthur played great football, closing down Sydney Olympic on half of the pitch. With the changes made by coach Geof Abrahams, he gave breath to the team until the end of the game, finding the women’s team victorious and first in the standings.
Jon Adgemis has struck a $400 million refinancing deal with a consortium led by Deutsche Bank to save his Public Hospitality Group (PHG) from collapse.
Sources told the AFR the funding will be used to pay staff, suppliers, and creditors, and a new general manager with hospitality industry experience is expected to be appointed to manage the group’s venues. Adgemis will stay on as executive chairman.
Adgemis’ hospitality group encompasses about 20 venues which span from Guy Grossi’s Puttanesca Osteria in Melbourne to The Strand Hotel in the Sydney CBD. In January 2024, PHG also acquired Sydney-based Greek restaurant, Alpha.
Jon Adgemis acquired Sydney’s A-list Greek restaurant Alpha.
The Australian Financial Review has released its Rich List for 2024 and among the names are at least 11 Australians of Greek heritage.
Who are they and what do they do? The Greek Herald finds out.
60. Nick Politis – Wealth $2.36b
Mr Politis is the majority shareholder in Eager Automotives, which runs 200 dealerships in Australia and has a net profit that jumped to $122m this year. Through his private investment vehicles, WFM Motors and NGP Investments, Politis is also a part-owner of the Brisbane Broncos. He is also the chairman of the Sydney Roosters.
84. Dennis Bastas – Wealth $1.8b
Dennis Bastras’ Arrotex Pharmaceuticals makes about one-third of the medicines dispensed under Australia’s Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme each year. With Canadian investors he also owns Juno Pharmaceuticals, which makes post-patent drugs for hospitals. Bastas also chairs genomics company myDNA. A long-time deal maker in pharmacy, Bastas built up the Pharmasave retail chain, and the CHS wholesaling business, then sold both to Sigma Pharmaceuticals in 2014. In 2003 he founded Ascent Pharmaceuticals, and sold it to Actavis for $400 million in 2012.
90. Nick Andrianakos & family – Wealth $1.73b
Nick Andrianakos is one of the Australians of Greek heritage on the rich list. Photo: Athina Souli.
From modest beginnings as a single service station owner in 1973, Andrianakos built the Milemaker brand to be a 54-site chain before selling the business to Caltex for $95 million in 2016, retaining the freehold land on 30-year leases. Andrianakos now chairs the board of his family business with the support of his children as board members. Theo Andrianakos is the chief executive leading the day-to-day operations of the group, which now boasts a diversified portfolio of retail, commercial and industrial properties. In June 2022, the family partnered with Vicinity Centres, acquiring 50 per cent of Adelaide’s Colonnades shopping centre.
92. Terry and Arthur Tzaneros – Wealth $1.7b
New to the Rich List in 2024. Father and son duo, Terry and Arthur Tzaneros, own ACFS Port Logistics, the largest privately owned container logistics operator in Australia, and freight logistics firm, AGS World Transport. Terry and Arthur started ACFS Port Logistics in 2005 and it now employs more than 1100 people across Australia. Additionally, the family has made plenty of headlines in recent years over its prestige property movements, with Arthur named as the buyer of a $61.5 million Bellevue Hill mansion in Sydney last June, just one year after settling on his $32 million Vaucluse home.
112. Nicholas Paspaley & family – Wealth $1.47b
Paspaley is best known for pearls, but its enterprises span livestock, a fleet of planes, wineries and commercial property. Its fortunes were forged by Nicholas Paspaley snr, who fled the Greek island of Kastellorizo during World War I. He set up the business with a collection of mother-of-pearl shells for the button trade in 1935, and it would become one of the world’s most important producers of cultured pearls. His company employs 1200 people.
140. Spiros Alysandratos – Wealth $1.1b
Alysandratos founded Consolidated Travel in 1967 after travel agents gave him the runaround as he tried to book a flight back to his native Greece. The emigre from the isle of Kefalonia built Consolidated into a provider of wholesale ticketing services for most travel agents and airlines servicing Australia.
143. Harry Stamoulis & family – Wealth $1.1b
The Stamoulis fortune was built by the late Spiros Stamoulis, who emigrated from Greece to Melbourne aged 12 in 1950. Once Australia’s middleweight Greco-Roman wrestling champion, Stamoulis tried building a yoghurt factory before establishing Gold Medal Drinks in 1969. Its success allowed investments in Melbourne rock radio station 3XY, Greek newspaper Ta Nea and swaths of property, a business overseen by son Harry to this day. Stamoulis Property Group’s flagship interests include a major Woolworths distribution facility in Melbourne’s Mulgrave and the One Collins Street tower.
149. Theo Karedis – Wealth $1.03b
Theo Karedis.
Theo Karedis migrated from the Greek island of Kythira, opening a deli in Sydney’s Neutral Bay in 1955. He made his fortune after building up his Theo’s Liquor chain of 51 bottle shops, before selling it to Coles in 2002. Karedis ploughed the proceeds into real estate. His Arkadia Property Services owns 12 shopping centres and three hotels along the eastern seaboard), plus superyacht Infinity Pacific.
152. Con Makris & family – Wealth $998m
Con Makris.
From humble beginnings in an outer suburb of Athens, Con Makris migrated to Adelaide in 1963 and built up a chain of seven chicken shops. He sold those in the early 1980s and bought his first mall, eventually owning a string of them in the City of Churches. Makris moved to the Gold Coast in 2017 and has divested most of his Adelaide interests. In February 2023 he announced plans to redevelop Marina Mirage.
188. Kerry Harmanis – Wealth $758m
The former barrister abandoned his legal career in favour of prospecting for gold in 1979. A gold venture at Jubilee Mines failed in 1994; he tipped in close to $1 million to keep it afloat. It turned to nickel and its Cosmos Nickel mine led to a $3.1 billion takeover by Xstrata in a deal marked by exquisite timing. Within months of the 2007 sale the nickel price would tumble but not before Harmanis collected close to $500 million selling up. He is now back in the resources game at Talisman Mining.
Federal Court documents have revealed journalist Lisa Wilkinson was billed $8,000 for each full day in court by her lawyer Sue Chrysanthou during Bruce Lehrmann’s failed defamation case.
Mr Lehrmann lost his defamation action against Network Ten and Ms Wilkinson, which was brought over an interview with Brittany Higgins when she first alleged she’d been raped.
Ms Wilkinson this week returned to court as she attempts to recuperate about $1.8 million in legal fees from Network 10 after she decided to be represented separately.
According to The Daily Telegraph, court documents released by the Federal Court on Thursday detail numerous invoices issued to Ms Wilkinson throughout the years-long legal battle; the most recent being an invoice dated May 9 for $405,328. The fee is listed as being for Ms Chrysanthou’s counsel.
Similar fees dating back to mid-2023 ranged in size from $10,340 to $97,988 before GST was added. The largest single invoice issued to Ms Wilkinson was dated February 29, 2024: amounting to $576,224.72 after GST, it included news subscriptions and lunches.
Network Ten’s lawyers said they don’t dispute that they have to pay Ms Wilkinson’s legal fees, but do not want to pay for things that have been doubled up.
The case will return to court next month as part of the work to determine what costs should be awarded.
The electorate office of Member for Northcote and Cypriot Australian, Kat Theophanous MP was targeted by pro-Palestine protesters in Melbourne, Victoria on Friday morning.
Police are investigating after red paint and pro-Palestine slogans were sprayed on the buildings, which include the offices of Ms Theophanous, Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus, former Labor leader Bill Shorten, Wills MP Peter Khalil and Cooper MP Ged Kearney. Vandals also broke multiple windows at the US consulate on St Kilda Road
The slogans include “free Gaza,” “glory to the martyrs” and “free Palestine,” as well as several profanities.
Pro-Palestine protesters vandalised the front of the building that houses the US consulate in St Kilda Road. Photo: Chris Hopkins.
These protests come after a number of groups called for a national day of action against Labor MPs that organisers accuse of being complicit in genocide in Israel’s invasion of Gaza.
More than 36,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to local health officials, since Israel began its large-scale offensive in Gaza following the Hamas attacks against Israel on October 7, when around 1,200 people were killed and 250 taken hostage.
Foreign Minister Penny Wong has demanded Israel halt its military campaign in the southern Gazan city of Rafah, but protest organisers say federal Labor MPs’ failure to support a Greens motion recognising Palestine as a state had compelled their escalation.
Speaking this morning, Foreign Minister Wong said the vandalism was unacceptable.
“Workers have a right to be safe and to feel safe,” she said.
The remains of recently identified Greek soldiers killed on duty in Cyprus from 1963 to 1974 have been returned to their families.
Some of the men were killed during bicommunal fighting in 1963-1964 and others during the Turkish invasion of 1974.
According to Ekathimerini,15 soldiers in total were identified, with eight of them being repatriated and buried in Greece.
Cyprus’ President Nikos Christodoulides attended a funeral service on Thursday in Nicosia for the soldiers before their remains were contained in Greek flag-draped coffins.
The soldier’s remains were contained in Greek flag-draped coffins.
Christodoulides said it was the least the state can do to honour and pay respect to the memory of those who died.
In Greece, full military honours will be afforded to the remains at a ceremony that is scheduled to take place at Elefsina Air Base on Friday, before they will be taken to the soldiers’ native places for reinternment.
The families of another six opted to have their remains reinterred at a mass grave in the Cypriot capital that stands as the country’s prime monument for the war.
“Greece condemns the recent attacks against civilians, including children, in Rafah,” the ministry said in the statement.
“We call for a thorough investigation which will shed light into the exact circumstances of this attack.”
#Greece condemns the recent attacks against civilians, including children, in #Rafah. We call for a thorough investigation which will shed light into the exact circumstances of this attack. pic.twitter.com/Wg3xm1ZVxX
Greece also reiterated its call for “an immediate ceasefire, respect of humanitarian and international law by all parties, urgent entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza and release of all hostages held by Hamas.”
This statement comes after Israeli airstrikes ignited a massive blaze at a tent camp in Rafah, Gaza late on Sunday, May 26. At least 45 people were killed and more than half of those burned to death were women, children and elderly people.
After launching his French Open 2024 campaign with a marathon win over fellow Australian Alexei Popyrin, the world No.100 Thanasi Kokkinakis triumphed over Italian qualifier Giulio Zeppieri in another five-set epic.
With his 1-6, 4-6, 6-3, 7-6(7/5), 6-2 victory, the 28-year-old Kokkinakis moves into the French Open third round for the third time in his career.
As often occurs in a Kokkinakis encounter, there were multiple twists and turns in the near four-hour contest, with the Australian undeniably flat in the early stages against the world No.148 Zeppieri. He dropped the first two sets.
The first set passed in 34 minutes, but rain interrupted the second. The players endured a delay of over an hour and it appeared to recharge the Greek Australian.
Kokkinakis came back to win the third set 6-3 and won a tiebreak 7-5 to send the match to a deciding set as they went beyond three hours on court.
With the Italian appearing to fatigue, and treated for a leg complaint, Kokkinakis drew on his experience as he closed out the five-set victory when a Zeppieri forehand sailed long. The match lasted three hours and 45 minutes.
Kokkinakis now prepares to meet No.12 seed Taylor Fritz in the third round.
