Administrative regions of Greece

The mayors of Lesvos, Chios, Samos, Leros and Kos - the five eastern Aegean islands worst hit by the refugee crisis - secured a European Union pledge of 50 million euros in emergency assistance during their recent trip to Brussels, they told reporters in Athens on Thursday. 

There will be traffic restrictions in effect on the roads around Lycabettus Hill in central Athens on Sunday morning due to a fun run.

The third Lycabettus Run is due to start at 9 a.m., leading to the closure of a number of roads in the area for a few hours.

Peristeri station on Line 2 of the Athens metro and Kerameikos station on Line 3 were to remain closed Thursday as part of ongoing work to install ticket barriers in a bid to crack down on fare dodging.

Anthoupoli station on Line 2 and Aegaleo on Line 3 are set to remain closed on Saturday and Sunday for the same reason.

Greece is set to experience a recovery in its tourism revenues this year after the notable decline registered in 2016, while it is also poised to chalk up a new record in international arrivals, according to the president of the Greek Tourism Confederation (SETE), Andreas Andreadis.

Six Greek Universities were included in the top tertiary institutions globally for 2017. The National Technical University of Athens (Metsovio) was ranked among the top 50 Universities in the world in the field of civili engineering. The Athens University of Economics and Business is ranked between 151-200 on the fields of Accounting & Finance, Business Administration and Economic Science.

Police in Athens in the early hours of Tuesday exchanged fire with a group of men believed to be behind a string of safe robberies at industrial facilities around Attica and Viotia.

The incident occurred around 4.30 a.m. as officers of the OPKE squad tried to question the passengers of a car in Ano Liosia, northern Athens, following an attempted break-in at a pharmaceutical company.

Large quantities of the synthetic drug fenethylline which were found in a makeshift laboratory near Elefsina, west of Athens, last week, had been destined to be smuggled to the Middle East, it emerged on Monday.

Also known by its brand name, Captagon, the stimulant is believed to be widely used for recreational purposes in the Middle East and by fighters in Syria to keep them alert.

Alternate Citizens' Protection Minister Nikos Toskas accused Athens Mayor Girogos Kaminis on Friday of "political hypocrisy" after the latter's call for his resignation over the state of the capital's universities.

Toskas said Kaminis's call was politically motivated and driven by his ambition to play a central role on the country's political stage.

People due to travel by rail on Saturday between Athens and Thessaloniki will face upheaval due to maintenance works being carried by the Hellenic Railways Organization (OSE) on the section of the line between Tithorea and Lianokladi.

The works are to begin at 4 a.m. on Saturday and continue until 4 a.m. Sunday.

Commuters ride bicycles and motor scooters amidst a traffic jam, in Athens, Friday.