Athens' Christmas tree gets police guard

Saturday, December 12, 2009 ATHENS: The Christmas tree adorning the Athens city centre will be given a 24-hour police guard after its predecessor was burned to a crisp during youth riots last year, police said on Friday.The 15-metre (49-foot) metallic structure covered with scores of small fir trees will be "discreetly" monitored by police foot patrols, a police source told media.The tree, which is the centrepiece of Athens' Christmas festivities on central Syntagma Square, is to be lit Friday night.Television footage of last year's burning tree was one of the most emblematic images of riots sparked by the fatal shooting of a teenage boy by a policeman whose squad car was allegedly assaulted by a group of youths.A replacement tree was later also targeted by demonstrators who pelted it with garbage after authorities ringed it with riot police.The city of Athens postponed this year's tree unveiling until after street demonstrations held in several cities last weekend to commemorate 15-year-old Alexis Grigoropoulos' death on December 6, 2008.Scores of youths clashed with riot police on the sidelines of the Athens demonstrations on Sunday and Monday, and the rector of Athens University was injured in a brief takeover of the university's offices in the city centre.

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India's swine flu death rate is increasing

Friday, August 14, 2009 MUMBAI: A 26-year-old woman died Thursday of H1N1 swine flu in the southern city of Bangalore, raising India's death toll from the virus to 20, authorities said.The death was the first reported in India's information technology capital, the Press Trust of India reported.Meanwhile in Pune, the worst-affected in India, two more victims of the virus died Thursday, raising the death toll in that western city near Mumbai to 12, the report said. The victims were an 11-month-old boy and a 75-year-old old woman.US media reported movie halls, schools and colleges were ordered closed Thursday for three days to a week in Mumbai, the commercial and financial capital of the country, as fear of the pandemic spread.Prajakata Lavangare, a spokeswoman for the government of Maharashtra state of which Mumbai is the capital, said similar orders were issued in Pune, which is also located in the state.The woman who died in Bangalore was identified only as Roopa, a teacher in

Cuba's world-famous cigar festival closes in Havana

Sunday, February 28, 2010 HAVANA: Hundreds of wealthy merchants and cigar aficionados from all parts of the world gathered in Havana this week to bid high stakes for humidors full of premium cigars. Cuba's annual Habanos festival ended on Friday night with an auction of ornate humidors of cedar and mahogany stacked with hand-rolled stogies that raised 800,000 euros ($1.09 million dollars). Habanos S.A. executives this month said cigar sales fell 8 percent to $360 million in 2009, so they have created the Julieta, a smaller, milder version of the Romeo y Julieta cigar, aimed specifically at female smokers. Women now make up only 5 to 10 percent of customers for Habanos. But even with the creation of the Julieta, Garcia said Habanos has only modest hopes for 2010 sales, due largely to a weak economy in Spain, the biggest market for Cuban cigars. The flavor of premium tobacco relies on the soil and climate in which it is grown. The western province of Pinar Del Rio, famous fo

Cyprus lace to be declared UNESCO cultural heritage

Tuesday, September 08, 2009 NICOSIA: Traditional hand-made lace produced in the Larnaca district village of Lefkara in Cyprus known as lefkaritiko includeded in UNESCO’s list of Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH). Soseilos said that the relevant UNESCO committee has already decided to include lefkaritiko in its list of the world’s ICH, a more recent addition to UNESCO’s long-standing list of World Heritage sites, and the decision will be formally announced at the UNESCO General Assembly next month. The tradition of needlework and lace embroidery in Lefkara goes back centuries.

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