Antonis Samaras

For over one year the Novartis affair has fueled constant political tensions and it will be a central issue in the forthcoming general election, which is to be held by October at latest.

To Vima on Sunday reported yesterday that Corruption Prosecutor Eleni Touloupaki (photo) has told the Judicial Council that she expects the case to be wrapped up within the next six months.

The cases against most of the politicians implicated in the alleged Novartis bribery scandal will be shelved next week due to a lack of evidence, according to judicial sources on Tuesday.

The Novartis affair, which was once described by the government as the biggest scandal since the establishment of the Greek state, appears to be fizzling out as the judiciary closed the investigation due to lack of evidence for four politicians and sent only the case of former health minister Andreas Loverdos (Pasok) to parliament with a request that his parliamentary immunity be lifted so that

Greece's former conservative prime minister Antonis Samaras on Thursday slammed the name deal reached between Greece and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) saying the accord was tantamount to recognizing the latter's irredentist ambitions.

The protest against the deal renaming the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) North Macedonia is underway outside the Greek Parliament.

There was a scuffle with police a few minutes ago, as protesters tried to scale the steps leading to the Parliament. Police used tear gas to repel them.

In a new major twist to the ongoing investigation into an alleged bribery scandal involving Novartis, a former protected witness suggested that the charges of accepting bribes that have now been brought against him are politically motivated, casting aspersions on the procedures being followed by the judiciary.

A former protected witness in an alleged bribery scandal involving Novartis told Skai TV on Wednesday night that the charges of accepting bribes that have now been brought against him are politically motivated.

Monday's bomb attack on the offices of Skai and Kathimerini are a "abhorrent act of violence and attempt to muzzle journalism," former conservative prime minister Antonis Samaras said.

He added that those who have been targeting Greek media and journalists should finally consider their responsibilities.

Former conservative prime minister Antonis Samaras lambasted Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on Saturday over the agreement signed between Greece and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) last June to resolve a long-standing dispute on the latter's name, saying it opens the door for more claims by the neighboring country.

Former conservative prime minister Antonis Samaras has vowed to sue all the "schemers" that sought to implicate him in the Novartis pharmaceutical scandal.