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Greek Government Strongly Condemns CBS Report on Terrorism ============================================= Xinhuanet 2002-01-08 05:29:40 ATHENS, January 7 (Xinhuanet) -- The Greek government on Monday strongly condemned a news report by American television station CBS on terrorism in Greece, saying that the television channel did not respect even the basic rules of journalism. According to a dispatch by the official Athens News Agency (ANA) from New York , American television station CBS in its "60 Minutes " news program aired a segment on the notorious Greek terrorist group "November 17" on Sunday, in which veteran journalist Ed Bradley accused the Greek government of not making any arrests of suspected members of the group in the 26 years since it first surfaced and after more than 100 attacks. Bradley claimed that the issue of terrorism in Greece concerns Washington in light of the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, while saying that although no link has been uncovered tying "November 17 ", the inability of Greek authorities to hunt down the group's members may "attract" other terrorist organizations to Athens in 2004. Bradley also described the U.S. embassy in Athens as a veritable "fortress", adding that the U.S. State Department spends more money on the safety of U.S. diplomats in Greece than it does for any other country in the world. Presenting Greece as a terrorist "paradise", the "60 Minutes" segment describing the Greek Parliament Speaker Apostolos Kaklamanis as representing the "ultra-nationalist and anti- American" wing of the ruling Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK) party. Refuting the CBS' report, Greek Government Spokesman Christos Protopapas said some people in the U.S. broadcast the report with "the ulterior motive", who did not respect even the basic journalistic code of ethics. The spokesman questioned the timing and "expediency" of the report in light of Greek Prime Minister Costas Simitis' official visit to the United States this week and a meeting with President George Bush at the White House. On his part, Kaklamanis issued a statement later in the day, saying "the purpose of this miserable and suspect program is obvious as it is ingenuous and it emanates from the well-known propaganda of the circles in the United States, namely, that there are politicians in Greece that harbor terrorism. And of course, anyone can discern that the broadcast timing of this cheap propaganda program, focusing on the issue of security for the Olympic Games, cannot be considered as coincidental." Kaklamanis also blasted former U.S. ambassador to Athens Thomas Niles and ex-diplomat Wayne Merry for their caustic comments regarding Greece and "November 17" on the same segment. Enditem ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: archive@jab.org EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.a9WB2D Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================
