Wednesday, November 12, 2014

«ΠΑΡΤΙ» ΣΤΗΝ ΥΓΕΙΑ

«Παρέλαση» μεγαλογιατρών στον ανακριτή για μίζες εκατομμυρίων
Από την εφημερίδα ΗΜΕΡΗΣΙΑ,

Δεκάδες μεγαλογιατροί δημόσιων νοσοκομείων, μαζί με στελέχη μεγάλης εταιρείας προμήθειας ιατρικού υλικού θα περάσουν την πόρτα των ανακριτών προκειμένου να λογοδοτήσουν για το μεγάλο κύκλωμα που είχε στήσει «πάρτι» εκατομμυρίων στο ΕΣΥ.
Χθες η Εισαγγελία απήγγειλε κατηγορίες σε βαθμό κακουργήματος σε δύο στελέχη της εν λόγω επιχείρησης για υπόθεση παράνομων αμοιβών στους γιατρούς. Σύμφωνα με τη δικογραφία, φέρεται να διακινήθηκε «μαύρο χρήμα» εκατομμυρίων ευρώ προκειμένου να χρηματιστούν οι γιατροί και να επιλέγουν τα προϊόντα της προμηθεύτριας εταιρείας.

Monday, November 10, 2014

Όλη η συνέντευξη του Σπύρου Μουζακίτη στο ΠΡΩΤΟ ΘΕΜΑ

«Μας είπαν κάτω τα μολύβια στη λίστα Λαγκάρντ»
Μανόλης Γαλάνης 09/11/201423:35

«Στο διάστημα που δουλεύαμε την ποινική δικογραφία της λίστας Λαγκάρντ ήμασταν συνεχώς υπό την απειλή άσκησης πειθαρχικής δίωξης», δηλώνει, σε μια συνέντευξη-ποταμό στο «ΘΕΜΑ», ο πρώην εισαγγελέας Οικονομικού Εγκλήματος Σπύρος Μουζακίτης.



Ο εισαγγελικός λειτουργός, που με τον συνάδελφό του Γρηγόρη Πεπόνη ανέλαβαν τον Μάιο του 2011 να πατάξουν το οικονομικό έγκλημα στη χώρα μας, 15 μήνες μετά την παραίτησή του από τη θέση αυτή σπάει τη σιωπή του και αποκαλύπτει πολιτικές και δικαστικές παρεμβάσεις που δέχτηκε στο έργο του. Ο κ. Μουζακίτης αναφέρει ότι στο στάδιο της έρευνάς τους για την υπόθεση της λίστας Λαγκάρντ οι δύο δικαστικοί, έχοντας προηγουμένως δεχτεί ασφυκτική πίεση, οδηγήθηκαν ουσιαστικά σε παραίτηση αφού με νομοθετική ρύθμιση-μήνυμα («κύριοι, κάτω τα μολύβια, είστε αναρμόδιοι, δεν μπορείτε να συνεχίσετε») τους αφαιρέθηκαν όλες οι σοβαρές υποθέσεις. Ο επίτιμος αντεισαγγελέας Εφετών σήμερα περιγράφει τον τρόπο με τον οποίο μετά το «άνοιγμα» της υπόθεσης των δα­νείων των κομμάτων επιχειρήθηκε η κατάργηση του ίδιου και του κ. Πεπόνη με νομοθετική ρύθμιση, η θέση τους σε πολύμηνη πειθαρχική ομηρία και ουσιαστικά η υπηρεσιακή απαξίωσή τους, ενώ μιλά και για τα καθημερινά εμπόδια που έβαζαν κάποιοι στο έργο τους αρνούμενοι να τους εφοδιάσουν ακόμα και με στυλό και χαρτί, λόγω της εισαγγελικής δράσης τους. Παράλληλα, ο δικηγόρος Αθηνών πλέον, αναφέρεται στους λόγους που τον οδήγησαν να αποχωρήσει από το δικαστικό σώμα για χάρη της μάχιμης δικηγορίας, καθώς και για το πώς αισθάνεται σήμερα στις δικαστικές αίθουσες.

In Ukraine, Shelling and Convoys of Armed Trucks Threaten Cease-Fire

The New York Times

By ANDREW E. KRAMERNOV. 9, 2014

MOSCOW — A shaky cease-fire in eastern Ukraine looked ever more tenuous on Sunday as European monitors confirmed reports of unmarked military vehicles driving through rebel-held territory while Donetsk, the region’s biggest city, endured a nightlong artillery battle.

The monitoring group, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, said that long columns of unmarked military vehicles, some towing howitzers, were spotted over the weekend. The monitors did not speculate as to the origins of the trucks or the people inside them, but Ukrainian officials said the statements bolstered their claims that Russia was again arming and training separatists.

Fate of Isis leader remains unclear after US airstrike in Iraq

Monitoring of Isis communications following attack near Mosul reveals nothing to suggest Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was killed
The Guardian

Officials in Baghdad and Washington remained unclear on Sunday about the fate of the Islamic State (Isis) leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi after a key aide was killed in a US air strike near Mosul.

A senior Iraqi official confirmed to the Guardian that the aide, Abdur Rahman al-Athaee, also known as Abu Sajar, was killed in the the attack late on Friday night, which hit a 10-car convoy southwest of the Isis stronghold.

Athaee was known to have been in almost constant contact with Baghdadi and officials deduced that his presence in the convoy likely meant that Baghdadi was with him.

However, monitoring of the group’s communications in the aftermath of the attack has revealed nothing to suggest that Baghdadi was killed. Officials have not ruled out that he may have been injured.

Friday, November 7, 2014

Exclusive: Euro zone considers three bailout exit options for Greece

BY JAN STRUPCZEWSKI
BRUSSELS Thu Nov 6, 2014 12:24pm EST
(Reuters) - Euro zone finance ministers will consider three options on Thursday for what happens after Greece exits its bailout at the end of the year, seeking to balance the need to reassure investors with the demands of domestic Greek politics.

The Greek government has staked its survival on exiting the bailout a year early, a move that will please voters hammered by austerity measures imposed by the EU and the IMF, but which has already rattled markets, pushing up Greek bond yields.

Central Command general to ISIS: We can hear you



By Eric Marrapodi, CNN
(CNN) -- The top U.S. military commander in the fight against ISIS said airstrikes are working to erode the terror group's capabilities and warned militants that the U.S. military is listening to them.
Army Gen. Lloyd Austin, who heads the U.S. Central Command, made those remarks at an event Thursday with the Atlantic Council, which was moderated by CNN anchor and Chief Washington Correspondent Jake Tapper.
"I'm confident we're having the desired effects," Austin said of airstrikes in Syria and Iraq aimed at ISIS.
"What we want to do is take away the enemies' ability to command and control, his ability to sustain himself, his ability to project combat power and his ability to move forces back and forth across the Iraq/Syria border."
Latest strikes target Khorasan group.

Thursday, November 6, 2014

Fed Completes Rule Limiting Banks’ Size

Bars Acquisitions That Result in a Firm Holding Over 10% of Financial-Sector Liabilities
By SCOTT PATTERSON and  VICTORIA MCGRANE
Updated Nov. 5, 2014 3:52 p.m. ET
The Wall Street Journal

WASHINGTON—Bank regulators took a step toward curbing the ability of large financial institutions to get bigger as Washington continues trying to lessen the risk giant firms pose to the U.S. economy and taxpayers.

The Federal Reserve on Wednesday finalized a rule, mandated by the 2010 Dodd-Frank financial law, that generally prohibits banks and other financial firms from buying or merging with rivals if the deal would result in the combined firm holding more than 10% of all liabilities in the financial system.

ISIS Wave of Might Is Turning Into Ripple

By BEN HUBBARDNOV. 5, 2014
The New York Times
BAGHDAD — The extremists of the Islamic State appeared unstoppable after their sudden blitz through Iraq this summer, with its battle-hardened fighters continually raising their black flag over newly conquered areas.

Today, roughly a third of Iraq is dotted by active battle fronts, with intense fighting and occasional Islamic State victories. But analysts also say the days of easy and rapid gains for the jihadists may be coming to a close in Iraq, as the group’s momentum appears to be stalling.

The international airstrike campaign against the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL, has clearly played a role in slowing the Sunni Muslim group’s advance. But analysts say other factors are having a major effect, including unfavorable sectarian and political demographics, pushback from overrun communities, damage to the group’s financial base in Syria and slight improvements by ground forces in Iraq.

Wednesday, November 5, 2014

ECB Fails 25 Banks as Italy Fares Worst in Stress Test

By Jeff Black  Oct 26, 2014 8:00 PM GMT+0200

Twenty-five lenders including Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena SpA failed a stress test led by the European Central Bank, which found the biggest capital hole in the region’s banking system in Italy.

The Frankfurt-based institution identified a total gap of 25 billion euros ($32 billion) as of the end of 2013, most of which has now been raised by banks. Among lenders still in need of funds, Italy’s Monte Paschi (BMPS) and Banca Carige SpA (CRG) must find a combined 2.9 billion euros between them, the ECB said today.

Monday, October 27, 2014

Misrule of the Few

How the Oligarchs Ruined Greece
By Pavlos Eleftheriadis FROM OUR NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2014 ISSUE
The Foreign Affairs


Just a few years ago, Greece came perilously close to defaulting on its debts and exiting the eurozone. Today, thanks to the largest sovereign bailout in history, the country’s economy is showing new signs of life. In exchange for promises that Athens would enact aggressive austerity measures, the so-called troika -- the European Central Bank, the European Commission, and the International Monetary Fund -- provided tens of billions of dollars in emergency loans. From the perspective of many global investors and European officials, those policies have paid off. Excluding a one-off expenditure to recapitalize its banks, Greece’s budget shortfall totaled roughly two percent last year, down from nearly 16 percent in 2009. Last year, the country ran a current account surplus for the first time in over three decades. And this past April, Greece returned to the international debt markets it had been locked out of for four years, issuing $4 billion in five-year government bonds at a relatively low yield -- only 4.95 percent. (Demand exceeded $26 billion.) In August, Moody’s Investors Service upgraded the country’s credit rating by two notches.

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Euro sells off after report ECB considering corporate bond buys

BY DANIEL BASES
NEW YORK Tue Oct 21, 2014 4:50pm EDT

(Reuters) - The euro fell sharply against the dollar on Tuesday after Reuters reported the European Central Bank was looking at buying corporate bonds as soon as December in its efforts to revive the stagnating euro zone economy.

The move, if realized, would expand the private-sector asset-buying program the ECB began on Monday, which is aimed at fostering lending to businesses in hopes of spurring growth.

Enforcer at Treasury Is First Line of Attack Against ISIS

By JULIE HIRSCHFELD DAVISOCT. 21, 2014

The New York Times

Every morning David S. Cohen descends into a fortified, cavelike complex in the bowels of the Treasury Department to pore through hundreds of pages of leads — from raw intelligence reports to polished threat assessments — to try to penetrate the vast and opaque finances of the Islamic State, the terrorist group capable of producing 50,000 barrels of oil a day.

China Attack Aims at iCloud, Apple’s Service for Storage

By PAUL MOZUR, NICOLE PERLROTH and BRIAN X. CHEN.OCT. 21, 2014

The New York Times
HONG KONG — For Apple in China, trouble seems to be the new normal.

Cybersecurity monitoring groups and security experts said on Monday that people trying to use Apple’s online data storage service, known as iCloud, were the target of a new attack that sought to steal users’ passwords and then spy on their activities.

Monday, October 20, 2014

U.S. Air Drops Arms To Kurdish Forces Fighting ISIS In Kobani

 AP      | By ROBERT BURNS
Posted: 10/19/2014 10:16 pm EDT Updated: 3 hours ago

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. military said Sunday it had airdropped weapons, ammunition and medical supplies to Kurdish forces defending the Syrian city of Kobani against Islamic State militants.

The airdrops Sunday were the first of their kind and followed weeks of U.S. and coalition airstrikes in and near Kobani, near the Turkish border. The U.S. said earlier Sunday that it had launched 11 airstrikes overnight in the Kobani area.

Friday, October 17, 2014

Syrian Kurds Gain Importance In Campaign Against ISIS

Posted: 10/16/2014 8:47 pm EDT     

WASHINGTON -- After more than a month of being outnumbered and outgunned, facing likely doom in Kobani, Kurdish fighters have begun to turn the tide against Islamic State militants with help from airstrikes by the U.S.-led coalition.

Thursday, October 16, 2014

ECB eyes extra funding for Greek banks as Athens markets plunge

BY GEORGE GEORGIOPOULOS AND JOHN O'DONNELL
ATHENS/FRANKFURT Thu Oct 16, 2014 11:45am EDT

(Reuters) - The European Central Bank will loosen its terms for accepting security from Greek banks to allow them to tap more of its funding, offering the country's lenders support as stock and bond markets in Athens tumble.

This will provide a powerful incentive for Athens, which has toyed with the idea of quitting its financial aid program earlier than scheduled, to stay under the supervision of international lenders rather than attempt to go it alone.

ISIS Retreating from Kobani, Says Kurdish Official

Rishi Iyengar  4:58 AM ET
TIME

The radical Islamist militants now reportedly control only 20% of the border town, as opposed to about 40% before

The Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS) has suffered setbacks and has begun retreating from parts of the Syrian border town of Kobani, according to a local official, who said Kurdish forces were advancing against the militant group.
Idris Nassan told the BBC that ISIS had previously controlled almost half the town but currently occupies “less than 20%.”

Wednesday, October 15, 2014

New Ebola Cases May Rise to 10,000 a Week by December

U.N. Health Body Aims to Have Majority of Cases Isolated Within Two Months to Reverse Outbreak
The Wall Street Journal
By ANDREW MORSE
Updated Oct. 14, 2014 5:40 p.m. ET
469 COMMENTS
ZURICH—The Ebola virus is killing 70% of the people who contract the disease, the World Health Organization said on Tuesday, and as many as 10,000 new cases a week could be reported by early December.

The Unserious Air War Against ISIS

The campaign against Serbia in 1999 averaged 138 strike sorties daily. Against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria: seven.

The Wall Street Journal

By MARK GUNZINGER And  JOHN STILLION

Oct. 14, 2014 7:04 p.m. ET

Since U.S. planes first struck targets in Iraq on Aug. 8, a debate has raged over the effectiveness of the Obama administration’s air campaign against Islamic State. The war of words has so far focused on the need to deploy American boots on the ground to provide accurate intelligence and possibly force ISIS fighters to defend key infrastructure they have seized, such as oil facilities. But debate is now beginning to focus on the apparent failure of airstrikes to halt the terror group’s advances in Iraq and Syria—especially Islamic State’s pending seizure of Kobani on the Syrian border with Turkey.

White House insists anti-Isis strategy is on track despite setbacks on the ground

Isis advances on Baghdad and Kobani despite 21 air strikes
Turkey bombs Kurdish targets in south-east of country

Dan Roberts in Washington and Constanze Letsch in Istanbul
The Guardian, Tuesday 14 October 2014 20.31 BST

The Guardian

The US-led campaign to combat Islamic State (Isis) fighters in Syria and Iraq is facing a growing crisis of confidence as setbacks on the battlefield coincide with efforts to improve allied coordination and calls for President Barack Obama to escalate the military attacks.