This controversial topic of gold mining in Chalkidiki has divided Greek public opinion. Stratoudakis, CEO of Hellas Gold, the Greek branch of Canadian Eldorado Gold, the main investor, says: “The country and the government seek capital. The total investment of the company in Greece will exceed one billion dollars in the next five years and that will increase exports of mining products.” He continues to emphasize that “the mining reserve in Skouries is rich and the drilling will produce not only gold, but also copper, lead, silver and zinc.”

Despite the approval of the mining company’s technical study and the governmental green light, the local residents took the matter to the streets as well as to justice. Eight local residents’ associations appealed against the 2011 decision that allowed Hellas Gold to go ahead with the drilling, but the Council of State upheld the ministerial decision as ekathimerini.com reports.

Since it is common knowledge that Greece desperately seeks investment and the Eldorado Gold will bring in cash for the Greek state, then why all this fuss and unrest? It was just last Sunday, on Mother’s Day, when female protesters were attacked by tear gas released by the police. As it becomes evident, the profile of the protester against the drilling of gold in Skouries does not fit the typical protester. So why would family people, homemakers, subject themselves to being arrested if the investment project will secure jobs for their children -1,500 to 1,600 positions as estimated by the company- and help fund the country’s budget deficit?

As it is clearly stated at the company’s site eldoradogold.com, the Skouries gold-copper project has an expected mine life of 27 years. However, the forest of Skouries, in the middle of which the company wants to establish an open-pit mine, has existed for centuries. “Those trees date back to the era of Alexander the Great. Skouries is an ancient and protected wood, with environmental impact for both Greeks and Europeans,” said Theocharis Zagas, president of the Hellenic Forestry Society, as quoted in Exandas film documentary on the subject.

On top of eliminating some of the ancient fauna of the country, there is a voiced concern from environmental organisations for polluting the main freshwater source for sixteen villages in the region. Not to mention that the nature of the mine is expected to also pollute the air, as it has been calculated by the company that the open pit will generate 3,000 tons of toxic dust per hour.

In an ironic twist of events, Environment Ministry has recently announced that 3,9 million euros have been allocated for the operation of forest services and forest stations. This is how the government plans to help protect forests from fire. What about deforestation and pollution? What really stands between the mining company and implementation of their plans for drilling gold is the active involvement of local people. Residents of the area oppose to drilling as they do not want to undermine (no pun intended) the quality of their lives and jeopardise the future of their children, according to the Hellenic Mining Watch.

The social unrest in the area takes a whole new perspective when taken into consideration the possible damage on the environment that this investment may have. Therefore, the question should be whether the benefits in money outweigh the environmental toll caused by gold mining in Skouries. What kind of investment do we want? A short-sighted or a far-sighted one? What is best for now or what is best for next generations? If I was to answer this dilemma, reaching for gold (and other minerals) should be the very last resort when all other options for attracting investment have failed. Have they?

“Canada is pleased to assist Jordan in meeting this challenge. Today, I am pleased to announce we are making available more than $13 million in bilateral aid to help Jordan deal with the immediate and pressing humanitarian and security needs brought on by the Syria crisis,” Foreign Affairs minister said in a statement.

“Jordan has consistently demonstrated a leadership role in the pursuit of a just and lasting peace in the Middle East, and it continues to lead in the face of the ongoing crisis in Syria. Jordan’s generosity in hosting an influx of Syrian refugees is a model for all. Some 2,000 desperate Syrians arrive in Jordan daily. Accepting them is not without sacrifice or risk domestically. It is done in the finest tradition of promoting human dignity,” he added.

Canada had previously already given Jordan $11.5 million to help with the influx.

Thousands of refugees have poured into Jordan during the past two years, exerting further pressure on Jordan’s already weak economy.

Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird made the announcement from Amman, where he met with Jordanian officials to discuss the two countries’ strong bilateral relationship, and ways to strengthen it further.  They also discussed the crisis raging in neighbouring Syria, and Jordan’s important contribution to the humanitarian response.

“Canada’s close and important relationship with Jordan is further enhanced by today’s inauguration of Canada’s new embassy building here in Amman. It was an honour to be able to do this alongside my Jordanian counterpart, Nasser Judeh. He is a dear friend and a true partner in this region.

Baird is on a 12-day tour of the Middle East, which will also include stops in Qatar, Bahrain and Israel.

At a dinner co-hosted by the Greek Consulate General in Toronto and Canadian banking and investment agencies, Avramopoulos had the opportunity to set out Greece’s comparative advantages in major sectors – such as transport, tourism and shipping – including its highly trained human resources, the major changes taking place in the Greek economy, and the structural reforms that are being implemented and are shaping a friendly, secure and attractive investment environment in Greece.

Avramopoulos briefed the guests on the major decisions that have been taken on the European level, dispelling any doubts as to Greece’s position in the Eurozone and Europe, as well as on the rehabilitation of Greece’s credibility, thanks to the sacrifices of the Greek people and the prudent implementation of the reform programme, and the improvement in the country’s international image, which has created increased interest on the part of international enterprises in investing and becoming active in Greece.

Within the framework of the dinner, Avramopoulos met with Robert Gilmore, Chairman of the Board of El Dorado Gold, to whom he underscored the Greek government’s determination to guarantee the necessary conditions for the successful completion of the company’s planned investments, which will create 2,500 new jobs and increase Greek exports.

Avramopoulos also visited the Greek Community Center in Toronto, meeting with representatives of the Greek Canadian community. Addressing Canadian’s of Greek descent, the Foreign Minister ensured them of the determination of the Greek government and people to move ahead with the major reforms the country needs, returning Greece to its rightful place in the world. Referring to Greece’s geopolitical role, he talked to representatives of Greek organizations in Toronto about the major issues in Greek foreign policy and the steps being taken to reform the World Council of Hellenes Abroad (SAE).

Giving the green light to a planned EUR 230 million investment by Eldorado Gold Corp. in the gold mine is aimed at calming the Canadian company’s concerns that arose in the wake of a swift, violent attack by masked vandals on one of its other mines over the weekend, the paper writes.

According to AMNA, this is a strong message voiced by Samaras that the government will not tolerate activities similar to last Sunday’s incendiary attack against the Hellenic Gold worksite in the town of Skouries, in the northern peninsula of Halkidiki, when some 40 masked intruders stormed the facility and set fire to machinery.

In statements to the WSJ, the Premier said that “this kind of act cannot be tolerated.”

“Greece is a modern European country, and we will at all costs protect foreign investment in the country,” Samaras added. “This is an investment that we very much want, and the whole procedure for the final approval will be finished within the next ten days,” the Greek premier told the WSJ as regards another mind in Thrace.

“The US military’s repatriation of detainee Omar Khadr from the Guantánamo Bay naval base to his native Canada is a small step towards ending the decade-long human rights vacuum at the US-run detention centre,” Amnesty International said on Monday.

Following his transfer to Canada on Saturday, the 26-year-old who was born in Toronto will remain in Canadian custody until he is eligible to apply for parole next summer.

Held by the US military since his detention in Afghanistan at the age of 15 in 2002, Khadr was subjected to torture or other ill-treatment and then prosecuted in Guantánamo’s military commissions system, a system that fails to meet international fair trial standards.

“Khadr’s tragic story underscores why Guantánamo should close – not tomorrow, but today,” said Suzanne Nossel, Amnesty International USA’s executive director. President Obama must live up to his promise to close the book on the Guantánamo chapter and ensure that all detainees are either charged and fairly tried, or released. He must also ensure full accountability and access to remedy for the human rights violations to which the US authorities and other states have subjected detainees. That’s the only way to ensure justice for everyone.”

Despite President Barack Obama’s promise to close Guantánamo within a year of entering office in January 2009, following Khadr’s repatriation, 166 men remain in detention at the US naval base, according to Amnesty. 

After the US military began operating the Guantánamo detention centre in January 2002, detainees were denied access to lawyers and the courts for more than two years, and allegations of torture and other ill-treatment of detainees relating to this period have been particularly prevalent. To date, only one detainee held at Guantánamo has been transferred to mainland USA and tried in ordinary federal civilian court. 

Over the course of the last decade, nine Guantánamo detainees have died in custody – including Yemeni national Adnan Farhan Abdul Latif in early September this year.

In October 2010 Omar Khadr was sentenced to 40 years in prison after pleading guilty to five charges under the Military Commissions Act 2009, including the “murder in violation of the law of war” of a US soldier in Afghanistan in 2002. 

As part of a pre-trial plea agreement, his prison sentence was limited to eight years – and he would not receive credit for the eight years he had already spent in US custody by then. He also became eligible for transfer to Canada after 12 months, though at the time there was no guarantee that his repatriation would take place.

The courts, UN bodies and numerous NGOs including Amnesty International have repeatedly pointed to the human rights violations, including arbitrary detention and allegations of torture and other ill-treatment by Khadr, that have yet to be remedied. 

His allegations of torture and other ill-treatment in US military custody are credible and troubling, and must finally be investigated impartially and effectively, Amnesty says. 

Canadian officials were also found to have violated Khadr’s rights when they continued to interrogate him in Guantánamo despite the fact that his detention and treatment violated international law.

Amnesty International also calls on Canadian authorities to afford Khadr the full protections to which he is entitled under international and domestic law, and to ensure he receives appropriate rehabilitation in preparation for his eventual release.

“Canada has closed its embassy in Iran, effective immediately, and declared personae non gratae all remaining Iranian diplomats in Canada,” Minister of Foreign Affairs John Baird said in statement.

“Canada views the Government of Iran as the most significant threat to global peace and security in the world today,” he said.

“The Iranian regime is providing increasing military assistance to the Assad regime; it refuses to comply with UN resolutions pertaining to its nuclear program; it routinely threatens the existence of Israel and engages in racist anti-Semitic rhetoric and incitement to genocide, he added.

In response to Baird’s remarks, Foreign Ministry spokesman, Ramin Mehmanparast, said in a statement that the closure of the Canadian Embassy in Tehran by Canada’s government is the continuation of Canada’s Prime Minister’s anti-Iran policies and an obvious breach of international law.

He referred to numerous and hostile measures by the Canadian government against the Iranian society of Canada as closing down the visa section of the Canadian Embassy in Tehran and freezing the accounts of Iranians, as well as blocking cash transfer for Iranian university students of Canada.

“Hostile attitude of the Canadian racist government is indeed pursuing the policies as dictated by the Zionist regime and the UK,” Mehmanparast added.

The spokesman noted that the government of Canada tried hard to prevent Iran from holding the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) Summit which failed due to negligence of participating countries and international personalities.

The United States also does not have a functioning embassy in Tehran since 1980, when 52 Americans were held hostages for 444 days. Britain’s embassy in Tehran has been closed since it was stormed by protesters last November.

Khadr, a Canadian citizen, was arrested in Afghanistan in 2002 – when he was 15 years old – for allegedly throwing a grenade that killed a US soldier.

Radhika Coomaraswamy, who finishes her term as the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict at the end of this month, called on the two Governments to transfer Mr. Khadr to Canada, as was agreed in October 2010.

“Omar Khadr was a child soldier and our experience around the world clearly indicates that a system focusing on rehabilitation is far better suited for these children who have been exploited and abused by adults,” she stated in a news release.

“Transferring him to Canada for proper reintegration is the right thing to do,” she added.

He was released without charge and allowed to return home to Canada. A Canadian judicial inquiry confirmed that he had been tortured in Syria and considered it likely that US authorities had relied on inaccurate information provided by Canadian authorities. The inquiry also noted that thorough investigations by Canadian authorities had not in fact found “any information that could implicate Mr. Arar in terrorist activities”. The Canadian government subsequently recognized the role Canadian officials played in his ordeal, and gave him compensation and a formal apology.

In contrast, the USA refused categorically to cooperate with the Canadian inquiry and, although a small number of members of Congress took the initiative individually to apologize to Maher Arar via a video link to him in Canada at a committee hearing in the US House of Representatives in 2007, the US President and full Congress have failed to apologize or offer Maher Arar any form of remedy. In fact, the Department of Justice successfully fought his attempts to pursue redress in court, based not on the merits of his claim but supposed “significant national security concerns.”

Canadian officials have also requested that the US government remove Maher Arar’s name from the US watch list. That request has been refused. As such, it remains impossible for him to travel to the USA or over US airspace, and he faces constant uncertainty about other countries that may have adopted the USA watch list. He feels strongly, too, that having his name removed from the list would be an important part of restoring his reputation.

Amnesty International stresses that under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, and other human rights treaties, the US government is obligated to fulfil the right of torture victims to remedy and redress—including an apology—for what they suffered.

Spain, Italy, Candada, Australia, Britain, France, Germany, announced the expulsions after talks with each other on what they called intolerable levels of violence, according to Reuters reports.

British Foreign Minister William Hague said the expulsions aimed to tell Assad’s government  that time was running out for them to comply with the peace plan.

French President Francois Hollande said the Syrian ambassador was to be expelled, hours after Australia announced a similar move, as France is preparing to host a new Friends of Syria meeting in early July, President Francois Hollande said on Tuesday, AP reported.

Spain is also expelling its Syrian ambassador, DPA reported, while Canada said all remaining diplomats are being told to leave.

Italy declared the Syrian ambassador and other embassy staff  “persona non grata,” the foreign ministry said,

More than 10,000 people have been killed since the uprising against Assad’s 11-year-rule broke out in March 2011, most of them opposition supporters killed by the army or security forces.

Meanwhile, Annan, the UN-Arab League envoy, has held talks with Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian president, as the UN human rights office has declared that more than 90 people who were killed in the Houla region were “summarily executed”.

Annan expressed what his spokesperson, Ahmed Fawzi, called “the grave concern of the international community about the violence in Syria” when he met Assad in Damascus on Tuesday, according to Al Jazeera.

The decision made by the Citizenship and immigration Canada department, came via a link on its official website that it had closed its visa section as part of an effort to operate “more effectively and efficiently.”

It said that all visa serivces would be transferred to the Canadian embassy in Ankara, in addition to being responsible for applications from Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey and Turkmenistan.

The move has outraged many Iranians who had been planning to apply for tourist or immigration visas to Canada, with several expressing their dissatisfaction on Twitter and other social media, according to AFP.

The Iranian community in Canada has started an online  petition urging Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism, Mr. Jason Kenny to consider the situation and voiced their concerns regarding this decision that  as they stated “will impact the lives of almost every permanent resident or Canadian citizen with ties to Iran.”

Canada has in recent years been seen by many  Iranians as a desirable destination to migrate especially for educational purposes, though restrictions on that matter have recently been applied.

There are approximately 120,000 people of Iranian origin or descent living in Canada according to the  2006 census.

The closure of the Canadian visa office further narrows options for Iranians seeking to travel west, after Britain closed its Tehran embassy in November after Iranian students stormed it. The United States also has no embassy since 1980 after Iranian students attacked it and took 52 Americans hostage for 444 days.