Modern regions of Greece

Thieves have stolen a safe from the Bishopric of Larissa in central Greece, authorities revealed on Thursday.

The thieves forced their way in to the building during the night and stole the safe, which contained 1,500 euros in cash and some documents.

It is thought that the perpetrators loaded the safe onto some kind of trolley so they could take it to their car.

Members of the Financial Crimes Squad (SDOE) confiscated over 1.3 million packs of contraband cigarettes in a warehouse located the area of Kalochori, near the northern port city of Thessaloniki on Tuesday, Greek police said in a statement on Wednesday.

A truck bearing Bulgarian plates and heating devices were also discovered in the warehouse, according to early reports.

The Hellenic Red Cross office in Thessaloniki on Tuesday appealed for donations to support the humanitarian aid effort in Serbia, where catastrophic floods have killed dozens and left thousands homeless.

Local officials in Thessaloniki have decided to go ahead with an informal referendum on the planned privatization of the local water and sewage company, EYATH, despite objections by the Interior Ministry.

Pedestrians in the northern port city of Thessaloniki will once more be able to stroll along Nikis Avenue from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday as part of a scheme by local authorities to gauge reaction to a possible permanent pedestrianization of the thoroughfare.

A 57-year-old man from Thessaloniki, in northern Greece, has been found dead after committing suicide by hanging himself, reports said Thursday.

The man was reportedly found dead by his wife at their holiday house in Halkidiki, east of Thessaloniki.

An 81-year-old woman died early Thursday morning after a fire broke out in her apartment in Thessaloniki.

The cause of the blaze remained unclear but firefighters managed to extinguish it before it could spread to other apartments.

The woman’s husband was rescued from the fire, according to local reports.

Five people owing a total of almost 3 million euros to the state were arrested in Attica on Tuesday.

The former managing director of a company was arrested in Papagou, northeastern Athens, for debts of just over 1 million euros.

A 61-year-old woman, who is the member of a firm’s board, was arrested in Piraeus for debts of more than 834,000 euros.

A 47-year-old pediatrician in the town of Ioannina, northwestern Greece, was expected to face a local prosecutor over charges of child pornography, it emerged on Tuesday.

The suspect was arrested by members of a cyberspace crime police unit following an investigation on illegal material that was traced to the Ioannina-based doctor.

The Greek railway company OSE restores the passenger trains between Sofia and Thessaloniki from May 10, reports Bulgaria's public broadcaster BNR. 

The train connection was terminated three years ago by OSE for economic reasons. Now the company renews it, along with the lines from Thessaloniki to Skopje and Belgrade.