Tag: greece

These Curious Ancient Greek Artifacts Have Extraterrestrial Origins—Why They Vanished 3000 Years Ago Remains a Mystery

Deep within ancient chamber tombs where elite members of society in ancient Greece and Crete were once laid to rest, new evidence has emerged that these high-status individuals wore some out-of-this-world iron jewelry.

Among the most coveted jewelry worn in the Bronze Age Mediterranean world were rings that were likely made from extraterrestrial iron, according to a new study published in the Journal of Archaeological Science.

Researchers Matthieu Gounelle and Eleni Mantzourani used chemical analysis to examine more than 90 iron objects from the Bronze Age and Early Iron Age, uncovered from 33 archaeological sites, revealing that about one-third of the artifacts were likely crafted using iron that fell from space.

Although iron harvested from ancient meteorites accounted for at least 10 of the rings the researchers examined, another three “might deserve further examination,” the study’s authors say, in new observations that indicate these ancient extraterrestrial adornments “may have been popular power symbols among prominent individuals” that included the Mycenaean and Minoan palatial elite.

Yet despite their apparent significance, the otherworldly fashion trend involving these otherworldly rings seems to have mysteriously vanished by the 12th century BCE, for reasons that remain unclear to researchers.

Using portable X-ray fluorescence, or XRF, to assess these rare artifacts in various museums where they are kept, most of the objects were found to contain very little nickel, if any at all. This is consistent with iron produced using smelting processes from the periods in question, which relied on terrestrial ores.

However, 13 of the objects possessed elevated levels of nickel, which hinted at the likelihood that some of these ancient rings had been crafted with metal originating in meteorites, which contain far more nickel than smelted varieties of iron do.

Keep reading

SICK! Red Cross DELETES Documentary Pushing Afghan Migrant “Success Story” After He is Arrested for STUFFING Body of British Aid Worker in a Suitcase

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies is pulling a film that presents the harrowing journey of an Afghan teenager to Europe after the man featured in it was accused of the killing of a Scottish aid worker whose body was found inside a suitcase.

Sharif Ahmadzai, 26, was ordered jailed pending trial by a Greek court on Thursday in the death of Elisabeth-Jane Ross, a 38-year-old psychotherapist and volunteer aid worker from Scotland.

Elisabeth-Jane Ross traveled to Greece with a heart full of compassion, volunteering to help the very migrant communities that the political left insists are completely harmless. Instead of gratitude, she met a horrifying end.

Ross was reported missing in mid-July. Last week, her body was discovered by a homeless man. She had been dumped in a derelict building in Athens, shoved inside a suitcase.

Greek authorities arrested Ahmadzai, a professional boxer who arrived in Greece as an “unaccompanied minor” in 2016, received asylum in 2018 and had no prior criminal record.

According to police, CCTV footage caught Ahmadzai casually wheeling the heavy suitcase containing Ross’s body through the streets of Athens.

Authorities say he then stole her bank cards and drained €10,000 from her accounts.

Keep reading

Palestinian Man Arrested on Suspicion of Planning Attacks in Greece

Police on the Greek island of Crete on Sunday arrested a 37-year-old Palestinian man on suspicion of planning “terrorist” attacks and belonging to the militant group Hamas.

Police said in a brief statement the man is also under investigation for traveling abroad to undergo training.

Searches in homes in both Crete and the Greek capital, Athens, turned up a number of mobile phones, a laptop, external hard drives and bank cards. The suspect will appear before a magistrate later Sunday.

Police said the man´s arrest is linked to the detention of four Palestinian men in Cyprus who are also being investigated on “terrorism-related” charges and “belonging to a criminal organization.”

Cypriot law enforcement authorities initially placed two Palestinians in custody on May 22 following what they said was the evaluation of gathered intelligence.

Authorities said they discovered in two residences used by one of the men suspected material that could be used in the manufacture of explosives.

Cypriot police detained another two Palestinian men on May 29 as part of the same investigation.

Keep reading

Greece Announces Massive Closure Operation of 60 Illegal Mosques in Athens Operated by Bangladeshis and Pakistanis

The Greek government has launched an exhaustive operation to identify and shut down all illegal mosques in the municipality of Athens, estimated at around 60, most managed by immigrants from Bangladesh and Pakistan.

This initiative, announced by the Minister of Migration and Immigration, Thanos Plevris, includes the simultaneous deportation of foreigners operating these sites, emphasizing that those who do not comply with Greek law will face automatic expulsion.

The operation is activated following a landmark case in the Agios Nikolaos area, where the residence permit of a Bangladeshi citizen accused of running an illegal mosque was revoked.

This individual was sentenced to prison for operating a place of worship without permission, and the site was sealed by the authorities. Plevris, during a meeting of the parliamentary committee on legal immigration, stated that «what happened in Agios Nikolaos will happen everywhere,» promising the closure of all irregular places of worship along with the revocation of legal documents of their operators.

The measure is part of a broader effort to combat illegal trafficking and promote legal migration, with cooperation between ministries to seal these spaces and deport those involved.

Athens has only one legal mosque, but estimates indicate that nearly 60 unauthorized sites are operating, converted into basements, apartments, warehouses or parking lots without basic specifications such as ventilation or adequate sanitation.

These places, mostly frequented by Bangladeshi and Pakistani communities, have proliferated in the last decade, with previous figures exceeding 100 in Attica.

The conservative government of Kyriakos Mitsotakis has prioritized national security and border control, contrasting with left-wing policies that, in the past, have allowed the expansion of illegal immigration, overburdening resources and generating risks for social cohesion.

This massive purge represents a blow against migratory irregularity, aligned with previous efforts such as the deportation of hundreds of Pakistanis who infiltrated illegally by sea in 2025.

Keep reading

Greece Declares “National Emergency” and begins mass deportations amid influx of illegal immigrants to Crete; over 7,000 detained this week.

Greece has taken a decisive step in response to the immigration crisis by declaring a “National Emergency” and ordering mass deportations of illegal immigrants following an alarming surge in arrivals to the island of Crete.

The Prime Minister announced that Greece would suspend asylum processing for immigrants arriving by sea from North Africa for three months.

According to reports, more than 7,000 people have been detained this week in what the Greek government has described as an invasion threatening national security.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced on Wednesday that Greece will suspend for three months the processing of asylum applications for immigrants arriving by sea from North Africa. The new measures will be put to a vote in Parliament on Thursday as an urgent amendment.

Keep reading

Greece Declares Migrant Crisis an ‘Invasion’ — Suspends Asylum Claims and Detains All New Arrivals

Some parts of Europe are finally waking up to the migrant invasion of their countries.

According to the BBC, Greece has begun detaining male migrants arriving from Libya and is no longer processing their asylum claims.

Meanwhile, the government has declared a state of emergency and announced new measures to stop what describes an “invasion” of their southern border.

The Greek island of Crete has become a key entry point to Europe after a 2023 Italy–Libya returns deal redirected trafficking routes away from southern Italy.

Roughly 10,000 migrants arrived on Crete earlier this week, most of them men from North Africa, overwhelming local services and costing taxpayers huge sums of money.

The BBC report provides more details:

In the centre of a sweltering, cavernous hall, rows of men sit in silence with nothing to occupy them but the wait. Signs from an old tourist fair propped up behind them urge visitors to “Explore the Beauty of Nature” with illustrations of coves and beaches in Crete.

But those held in the former Ayia exhibition centre did not come to the Greek island as holidaymakers. They are migrants who risked a journey across the sea from Libya to Europe’s southern tip and were then detained and denied the right to apply for asylum.

From Crete, they are now being moved to closed facilities on the mainland. The right for anyone to request protection, or asylum, is inscribed in EU and international law and in the constitution of Greece itself.

But in a move implemented in haste earlier this month and criticised by human rights lawyers, the government has over-ridden that principle for the next three months at least.

Keep reading

Greeks Grow Unfriendly To Israeli Tourists, Ships As Gaza War Grinds On

Though Greece is a highly popular international tourist destination for Israelis, the popularity of Israeli tourists is declining in Greece as Israel continues a war on Gaza marked by unusually high civilian casualties, imposed hunger, and the systematic and sweeping destruction of infrastructure. In addition to a string of incidents in which Greeks are verbally and physically clashing with Israeli tourists, protesters are targeting commercial ships seen as supplying Israel’s war on Gaza.     

The most widespread indication of Greeks giving Israelis a cold shoulder comes via signs and posters cropping up in tourist destinations. In addition to being mounted on utility poles, they’re also appearing in the front windows of some businesses. A few samples of the messaging: 

  • “All Israeli soldiers are war criminals. Occupiers, rapists, murderers. We don’t want you here!” 
  • “Israeli soldiers, you went on vacation but you will not escape the guilt. The beaches of Greece will not wash the blood off your hands”
  • “Israeli soldiers, colonizers, you are not welcome.”

Where personal confrontations are concerned, it’s not always clear who’s been initiating the hostilities. In the latest incident, a group of around 20 Israeli teenagers clashed with 10 to 30 Greeks on the popular island of Rhodes around 3 or 4 am on Tuesday. According to the Israelis’ accounts published in Hebrew media and shared on social media, anti-Israel demonstrators gathered outside a club the Israelis were patronizing. When the Israelis decided to leave the club, a Greek pretending to support Israel asked if they were Israelis. When they confirmed they were, the Greek summoned dozens of comrades who chased them down, kicking one of them. “I’ve never been so afraid in my life. We just wanted to go to a club to have fun, and suddenly people with knives were chasing us,” said a teen named Friedman. 

However, Greek newspaper Dimokratiki provides a far different account. Citing witness statements, video footage and other information, the paper reports that Hellenic Police say the fracas began when the Israelis started shouting pro-Israel slogans, which led to the Greeks calling them “murderers” and countering with pro-Palestinian chants. Police identified nine Israelis who were involved, and all of them were said to have departed by plane later the same morning. Authorities gave no confirmation of any assaults taking place. 

Keep reading

EU hits Greece with record fine over farmers subsidy fraud

The European Union has imposed a 392.2 million-euro ($451.9 million) fine on Greece over a major scandal involving the mismanagement of agricultural subsidies by a government agency between 2016 and 2022.

The bloc’s Executive Commission decided to reduce the subsidies Greece will receive in the next years by 5%, it said on Friday, reflecting the view that there has been no proper supervision and operation of the subsidy management model for years.

Greece expected to receive about 1.9 billion euros in direct EU subsidies next year.

The fine comes months after European prosecutors charged dozens of Greek livestock farmers who received EU financial aid through the Greek government paying agency OPEKEPE with making false declarations of ownership or leasing of pastureland.

Keep reading

Mysterious 4,000-year-old round stone building on Crete hilltop threatens to disrupt the island’s major airport project

A mysterious 4,000-year-old hilltop structure on the Greek island of Crete has threatened to disrupt plans for a major new airport project on the island. 

Resembling a huge car wheel from above, the ruins of the labyrinthine, 19,000-square-foot building came to light during a recent dig by archaeologists.

Experts believe the ‘unique and extremely interesting find’ was built by Crete’s ancient Minoan civilisation, famous for its sumptuous palaces, flamboyant art and enigmatic writing system.

But the site was earmarked for a radar station to serve a new airport under construction near the town of Kastelli.

Set to open in 2027, it is projected to replace Greece‘s second-biggest airport at Heraklion, and designed to handle up to 18 million travellers annually. 

But Greece’s culture minister Lina Mendoni, an archaeologist, pledged that the find would be preserved while a different location would be sought for the radar station.

Keep reading

Discoveries at Mt Ellanio Reveal Mycenean Refuge from the Bronze Age Collapse

An interdisciplinary team of archaeologists has been investigating the tallest mountain on the Greek island of Aegina since 2021: Mount Ellanio. Overlooking the Saronic Gulf, the peak holds the remnants of a 4th century Temple of Zeus Hellanios.

The mission, a Greek-Swiss partnership (EFAPN), is investigating the mountain’s prehistoric occupation, and have found a building measuring 4.5 by 3 meters (15 by 10 feet), containing an assortment of 30 ceramic vessels. What makes the building so special is that it is Mycenean.

Zeus on Ellanio: A Sanctuary and Safe Haven

The presence of Zeus worship on Mount Ellanio is documented in ancient texts like those of Pausanias. A chapel now stands atop these ancient foundations, but Corinthian clay tiles suggest an earlier structure beneath, likely a small temple.

North of the chapel, sacrificial remnants in a black layer, along with countless charred animal bone fragments, unveil ancient rituals. The discovery of pottery spanning from the Geometric era to Roman times also underscore the sacred site’s continuity.

An analysis of the vessels’ form and style helps trace their origins to the twilight and dying embers of the Mycenaean palatial era (the Late Bronze Age in Greece). This was a tumultuous epoch characterized by upheaval and disintegration of much of the ancient world, spanning the years from 1200 to 1050 BC, according to a press release by the Greek Ministry of Culture.

In the wake of this upheaval, mainland Greece witnessed a mass exodus, as waves of Mycenaean refugees sought solace in faraway lands, including Cyprus, the Levant, and neighboring Aegean islands. It was the end of Bronze Age Greece, and led to a Greek Dark Age lasting hundreds of years.

Aegina emerged as a sanctuary of respite amongst its mountainous contours, with survivors of the chaos seeking refuge amidst the sacred peaks. The fortified enclosure, consisting of retaining walls, ancient towers, and rock inscriptions, along with the dwellings at the summit, indicate the use of the hill as this refuge.

Keep reading