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Greek Fire
Govt official claims fires are "concerted assault"
More than sixty people are feared dead in forest fires which have been sweeping Greece since Friday. 170 fires, on over 40 fronts, are reportedly being fought.
Latest reports claim that the capital, Athens, is swathed in acrid smoke from the fires in the surrounding country, while ancient sites such as Olympia are being threatened by the disaster.
The area around Olympia - including one of Greece's most renowned museums and a luxury hotel - were evacuated as fires approached the site of the world's earliest Olympic Games. On Saturday, Greek officials claimed that the site was safe: However, as the weekend progressed, Olympia seems to have returned to the endangered list. The world's first Olympic Games, dating from 776 BC, were played there. The 5 BC theatre of Epidavros, also a World Heritage Site, is reportedly threatened too.
Dozens of villages in the surrounding area have been destroyed by the fires, which are sweeping across the south of the country in swathes that have been measured as several miles wide.
Many elderly people have reportedly refused to be evacuated.
The Peloponnese is reportedly the worst hit. The area surrounding the town of Zaharo on the western side of the island has been the scene of most deaths, with up to 40 people reported killed. The satellite photo above shows at least five large fires on the island. Firefighting crews are "overwhelmed" and water-bombing aircraft from Italy, France, Spain and Germany are helping with efforts to contain the inferno. At least seven other nations have sent planes to aid Greek firemen, including Canada and Iceland.
A second front is being battled north of Athens.
Part of the anger and disbelief that has greeted the fires in Greece comes from government claims that at least some of the fires were started deliberately. Greece, like much of south eastern Europe, is coming to the end of yet another hellishly hot summer. Sparse rain and temperatures in some places as high as 46 degrees have left much of the rugged forest in southern Greece tinder-dry. Mediterranean forest fires are relatively common and are often caused by lightning or by accident thanks to litter louts.
However, the government has offered a €1 million reward for information leading to the arrest of those starting the fires: Authorities are studying portable phone footage which appears to show two men lighting a fire.
The Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis claims that "The sheer number of fires breaking out simultaneously cannot be a coincidence." News media have responded with items depicting Greece as being "targeted" by terrorists who are starting fires all over the country.
Seven people have been arrested, including one 65 year old man who has been charged with arson and murder. Another elderly woman, who started a barbeque, has also been arrested.
The Times claims that some conservative MPs say off-record that they believe far-left radicals are behind the attacks. The left-wing Guardian, however, prefers to run with opposition claims that the arsonists behind the fires are working for developers who want to build housing on "prime forest land."
