Urban decay

A luxury hotel with 553 rooms and 1,209 beds in the resort town of Kemer will be auctioned for a minimum value of 144 million Turkish Liras (nearly $24.4 million).

The appraised value of the property, which also includes thousands of trees and ornamental plants, is twice as much of the minimum auction value, according to a report prepared as part of a foreclosure decree.

Police say they have arrested 18 members of a gang that committed multiple robberies, including some violent ones, in Athens.

The 18, all foreigners, were arrested Thursday.

Police say the gang included at least 20 more individuals.

Turkey's state-run aid agency opened a children's library on Sept. 23 in the southern port city of Karachi, Pakistan, aiming to support children's education in the slum areas.     

The European Commission has approved a plan for the protection from foreclosure of the primary residence of those who have delinquent mortgage loans.

According to the announcement of the Commission the annual budget for the implementation of the plan is 132mn euros.

Δείτε επίσης: Προστασία α' κατοικίας: Πράσινο φως από Κομισιόν, ανάσα για κυβέρνηση και δανειολήπτες

More than 19,000 applications have been submitted by indebted homeowners seeking to protect their property from being seized since the new system went online 11 weeks ago.

A group of self-proclaimed anarchists smashed the glass entrance of the Greek Consulate in the French city of Nantes, to protest the police operation in the Athenian district of Exarchia this week in which they removed squatters from abandoned buildings.

Seven people were temporarily detained late Thursday night in clashes with riot police in the central Athenian district of Exarchia.

Eurobank is prepared to send letters to some 35,000 clients with non-performing loans totaling 2 billion euros urging them to take advantage of the law allowing them to settle their debts on favorable terms and save their homes from foreclosure.

The police intend to continue conducting sweeps in the downtown Athens district of Exarchia and to establish a more permanent presence there in a bid to tackle lawlessness in the area.
"Our aim is to make our presence felt without creating the impression of a neighborhood dominated by police," a Citizens' Protection Ministry official told Kathimerini.

The implementation of the Health and Education for All program improved access to social, health and educational services for young Roma families and enabled 2500 children between 3 and 5 years of age to regularly attend kindergartens and preschool groups.