The Hellenic Navy (HN) (Greek: Πολεμικό Ναυτικό, Polemikó Naftikó, abbreviated ΠΝ) is the naval force of Greece, part of the Greek Armed Forces. The modern Greek navy has its roots in the naval forces of various Aegean Islands, which fought in the Greek War of Independence. During the periods of monarchy (1833–1924 and 1936–1973) it was known as the Royal Navy (Βασιλικόν Ναυτικόν, Vasilikón Naftikón, abbreviated ΒΝ).The total displacement of all the navy's vessels is approximately 150,000 tons.The motto of the Hellenic Navy is "Μέγα το της Θαλάσσης Κράτος" from Thucydides' account of Pericles' oration on the eve of the Peloponnesian War. This has been roughly translated as "Great is the country that controls the sea". The Hellenic Navy's emblem consists of an anchor in front of a crossed Christian cross and trident, with the cross symbolizing Greek Orthodoxy, and the trident symbolizing Poseidon, the god of the sea in Greek mythology. Pericles' words are written across the top of the emblem. "The navy, as it represents a necessary weapon for Greece, should only be created for war and aim to victory."...............The Hellenic Merchant Marine refers to the Merchant Marine of Greece, engaged in commerce and transportation of goods and services universally. It consists of the merchant vessels owned by Greek civilians, flying either the Greek flag or a flag of convenience. Greece is a maritime nation by tradition, as shipping is arguably the oldest form of occupation of the Greeks and a key element of Greek economic activity since the ancient times. Nowadays, Greece has the largest merchant fleet in the world, which is the second largest contributor to the national economy after tourism and forms the backbone of world shipping. The Greek fleet flies a variety of flags, however some Greek shipowners gradually return to Greece following the changes to the legislative framework governing their operations and the improvement of infrastructure.

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This is a bilingual blog in English and / or Greek and you can translate any post to any language by pressing on the appropriate flag....Note that there is provided below a scrolling text with the 30 recent posts...Αυτό είναι ένα δίγλωσσο blog στα Αγγλικά η/και στα Ελληνικά και μπορείτε να μεταφράσετε οποιοδήποτε ποστ σε οποιαδήποτε γλώσσα κάνοντας κλικ στη σχετική σημαία. Σημειωτέον ότι παρακάτω παρέχεται και ένα κινούμενο κείμενο με τα 30 πρόσφατα ποστς....This is a bilingual blog in English and / or Greek and you can translate any post to any language by pressing on the appropriate flag....Note that there is provided below a scrolling text with the 30 recent posts...Αυτό είναι ένα δίγλωσσο blog στα Αγγλικά η/και στα Ελληνικά και μπορείτε να μεταφράσετε οποιοδήποτε ποστ σε οποιαδήποτε γλώσσα κάνοντας κλικ στη σχετική σημαία. Σημειωτέον ότι παρακάτω παρέχεται και ένα κινούμενο κείμενο με τα 30 πρόσφατα ποστς.........

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Bomb in Athens Stock Market [ 371 ]

Greek stock market to operate despite attack

By Renee Maltezou

Bomb damages Athens stock market, one hurt

(Reuters) Wed Sep 2, 2009 2:57am EDT

ATHENS- A car bomb blew up outside the Athens stock exchange on Wednesday, slightly wounding one woman, damaging the building and setting eight vehicles ablaze, Greek police said.

The Athens bourse said it would open normally despite the attack, the latest of several against business and police targets since the December 2008 police shooting of a teenager sparked Greece's worst riots in decades.

The powerful blast came after an anonymous early morning warning call to a Greek newspaper. It blew out windows on several floors of the stock exchange and hurled debris hundreds of meters (yards) away from the building.

"It was an explosive device. The remains of it were found in a damaged car," said Greek police spokesman Panayiotis Stathis.

Police said a home-made bomb exploded at the same time outside a government building in the northern city of Thessaloniki, causing minor damage but no injuries.

A car dealership near the Athens bourse was seriously damaged by the bomb, planted in a white van which was parked on the side of the building and which was completely destroyed by the blast.

The chairman of the Athens Stock Exchange, Spyros Kapralos, said the damage to the building was substantial but officials were working hard to open for trading.

"Despite the huge material damages caused to the building by today's explosion, both the Athens and the Cyprus stock markets will operate normally," the bourse said in a statement.

The Athens stock exchange normally opens at 7:30 a.m. EDT. Athens and Nicosia share a trading platform.

The area was cordoned off by anti-terrorist police scouring for evidence.

Leftist and anarchist guerrilla groups have claimed responsibility for several attacks against businesses, cars and police this year, culminating with the assassination of a policeman in his car in June.

It was not immediately clear whether one of them was behind Wednesday's attack.

(Additional reporting by Dina Kyriakidou and George Georgiopoulos; Writing by Dina Kyriakidou: Editing by Dominic Evans)

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