Suspects for deadly attack on Vagia Nestora’s home charged with murder, attempted murder
Three people arrested in connection with a deadly arson attack in Thessaloniki on July 1, which led to one death and several injuries, have been charged with five felonies, including murder and attempted murder with possible intent, as well as participation in a terrorist organisation.
Vacation photos unlock deadly Marfin case
Sixteen years after the deadly arson attack on the Marfin Bank branch in Athens that killed three employees, Greek authorities have arrested two men and issued a warrant for a third suspect, reopening one of the country’s most high-profile unsolved cases. The two arrested men, both 42, appeared before a prosecutor and were granted time to respond to the charges. A warrant was also issued for a 46-year-old woman living in Brighton in the UK.
https://www.ekathimerini.com/news/1309278/vacation-photos-unlock-deadly-marfin-case
Deal reached with refiners on fuel costs
The government has reached an agreement with refiners Motor Oil and Helleniq Energy to reduce fuel prices through the end of August, following recent upward pressure on gasoline and diesel costs. Speaking to state broadcaster ERT, Deputy Prime Minister Kostis Hatzidakis said fuel prices had shown rising trends since the beginning of July, prompting the government to act in coordination with the country’s refineries. According to Hatzidakis, Motor Oil and Helleniq Energy each committed €20 million, for a total of €40 million, to support the measure. The funds will be used so that, starting this week and continuing through the end of August, the price of regular unleaded gasoline will be reduced by 10 euro cents per liter and diesel by 5 euro cents per liter, without fiscal cost.
https://www.ekathimerini.com/economy/1309264/deal-reached-with-refiners-on-fuel-costs
SYRIZA reverses support for Tsipras’ ELAS party at extraordinary meeting
SYRIZA has reversed its decision to support former prime minister Alexis Tsipras’ newly launched Greek Left Alliance (ELAS), following an extraordinary party meeting on Saturday amid internal divisions and a leadership crisis. The meeting, held on the initiative of key party figures Pavlos Polakis, Rena Dourou and Nikos Pappas, also reportedly decided to cancel Polakis’ expulsion from SYRIZA’s parliamentary group. Saturday’s session came after SYRIZA had decided a day earlier to postpone the meeting until Monday following Famellos’ resignation as party leader. Famellos stepped down on Thursday as SYRIZA faces mounting internal tensions and questions over its political future.
ATHEX: Lenders and refineries boost index
Refineries and banks stocks combined to give the Athens bourse a new boost on Friday, reversing more than half of the losses the benchmark incurred on Tuesday and Wednesday, with the resumption of military action in the Persian Gulf. As banks get ready to issue their second-quarter results – within the next month for most lenders – the sector will remain robust in the medium term, despite any external pressure due to geopolitical developments.
https://www.ekathimerini.com/economy/1309270/athex-lenders-and-refineries-boost-index
SUNDAY PAPERS
KATHIMERINI: The backstage of the bargain regarding the F-35 jetfighters
TO VIMA: Mitsotakis was a mere spectator at the NATO Summit’s bargaining
REAL NEWS: The lifting of the casus belli is a red line for Greece
PROTO THEMA: Marfin crime: How they caught the culprits 16 years after
MONDAY PAPERS:
TA NEA: The links of the Marfin case: Files open again
EFIMERIDA TON SYNTAKTON: Greece’s growth is based on war economy
KONTRA NEWS: The double game regarding the timing of the next elections
DIMOKRATIA: The PM’s nephew confessed about the wiretappings scandal
NAFTEMPORIKI: Greeks in the clutches of low wages and high taxes
DRIVING THE DAY
SETTLEMENTS DIVISION: A group of EU foreign ministers is set to put more pressure on the European Commission to crack down on trade with illegal Israeli settlements. The standoff is likely to dominate the ministers’ meeting in Brussels today — their last gathering before October.
Showdown: According to Commission estimates, annual trade between the EU and Israeli settlements is worth less than €100 million, or 0.5 percent of total EU-Israel trade. But advocates say clamping down on trade with the settlements is a matter of law and principle — and a group of countries hopes to achieve a majority to force the Commission’s to put forward firm proposals.
Not good enough: A discussion paper floated by the Commission last week, seen by POLITICO, lays out ideas for targeting exports from settlements that have expanded under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. But the paper doesn’t amount to a proposal that can be put to a vote, prompting claims the Commission is deliberately delaying action ahead of Israel’s general election in October.
Speaking privately, some EU officials argue that steep tariffs on goods from the settlements before the election would be counterproductive and would help hardline candidates like National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.
Deadlock: The Czech Republic has rejected further sanctions against Israel, while Germany intends to abstain or veto any new trade proposals, per a senior EU diplomat familiar with Berlin’s thinking, who spoke to Nette Nöstlinger. EU members in favor of the sanctions include Belgium, the Netherlands and Spain.
Ban call: Proponents of the measures want the Commission to take action. “The best solution is simply to prohibit any import of goods produced in the settlements,” said Nacho Sánchez Amor, a Spanish lawmaker on the European Parliament’s foreign affairs committee.
LAST DASH ON RUSSIA: The ministers will also try to wrap up the EU’s 21st sanctions package against Russia. But despite last-minute talks among ambassadors on Sunday, the deal may not be ready in time for today’s Foreign Affairs Council, per the diplomats.
What’s holding it up: Last-minute wrangling over a proposal to freeze a price cap on purchases of Russian oil — contested by Greece, Malta and Cyprus — as well as a proposal to bar ex-Russian combatants from entering the European Union.
Deal emerging: Ambassadors may well clinch an agreement on the price cap by today, diplomats told me and Koen Verhelst. The deal could see the freeze shortened to three months from the six originally agreed as part of a compromise.
Deal fading: But the same diplomats played down the chances of a deal on the ex-combatants, due to outstanding concerns from France and Italy, while plans to bar Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill from entering the bloc have been dropped due to Bulgaria’s refusal. “Those weakening the package are also among the weakest contributors of bilateral support to Kyiv,” said an EU diplomat. “They want the political credit of standing with Ukraine without paying the economic price.”
Looming over the whole thing: Fresh U.S. strikes against Iran, following the targeting of ships in the Strait of Hormuz, along with Iran’s overnight strikes on Gulf states and its claims to have closed the Strait, threaten to reignite both the war and a global energy crisis. The EU ministers will be huddling with counterparts from the Gulf Cooperation Council during a lunch session.
BIG AND BREAKING
ZELENSKYY RESHUFFLE: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced on Sunday that he intends to replace the country’s Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko as part of a major government reshuffle in Kyiv.
EUROPE MOURNS GRAHAM: German Chancellor Friedrich Merz called former U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham, who died suddenly on Saturday at 71, a “true friend and partner of Germany,” while Commission President Ursula von der Leyen praised the lawmaker’s support for Ukraine “until the very end.” AP reports of concerns in Ukraine over fears Graham’s death could mean a weaker link to the Trump administration.
CAPTIVE AFRICAN SOLDIERS IN UKRAINE SPEAK OUT: Soldiers from Africa recruited by Moscow and captured by Ukraine on the battlefield are telling their captors they would rather return to Russia than to their home countries.
ARREST IN WIDDECOMBE DEATH: A 28-year-old British national has been arrested over the suspected murder of Reform UK spokesperson and former MEP Ann Widdecombe. Local police say there’s still no evidence the death was related to terrorism.
STOPPING LE PEN: Rivals of far-right leader Marine Le Pen have a strategy to counter her presidential campaign: depict her as a leftist.
MACRON HOSTS UKRAINE BACKERS
COALITION OF WILLING IN PARIS: Leaders from Ukraine, NATO and across Europe converge on Paris this afternoon for “coalition of the willing” talks geared to ramp up pressure on Moscow and meet Kyiv’s immediate needs for air defense.
Crunch time: With 30 leaders invited, it’s the biggest gathering of the ad hoc coalition in months, as Ukraine pursues its campaign of deep strikes against Russia, causing fuel shortages — the latest strike targeting a refinery in the Samara region. Leaders are looking to exploit a “window of opportunity” for peace talks — but Vladimir Putin isn’t showing signs of softening.
On the contrary, the Russian leader has pummeled Ukraine with drones and missiles increasingly aimed at civilian targets, killing dozens in some of the deadliest strikes of the 52-month-old war.
That’s why, along with talking strategies to end the war, today’s meeting is about finding more air defenses for Kyiv.
Look closer: U.S. President Donald Trump has agreed to allow Ukraine to produce Patriot interceptor missiles under license. But those won’t be available immediately and Kyiv needs more air defense now.
Under pressure: Merz appears ready to come to the party, with Reuters reporting overnight that Berlin is funding 50,000 attack drones for Ukraine. But Merz is also looking to raise pressure on Spain and Greece to hand over Patriots — an issue he can press directly when leaders gather from 5 p.m. at the Hôtel des Invalides, Hans von der Burchard reports.
Not so fast: In Athens, the response is cautious. Every request must be examined with due consideration for Greece’s “needs for its territorial defense, as well as taking into account the continued volatile situation in the Middle East,” said a spokeswoman for the Greek Foreign Ministry.
Who’s coming? French President Emmanuel Macron has invited Zelenskyy, Merz, U.K. PM Keir Starmer, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President António Costa, top EU diplomat Kaja Kallas, Polish PM Donald Tusk, Danish PM Mette Frederiksen, Swedish PM Ulf Kristersson, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, Belgian PM Bart De Wever, Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Spanish PM Pedro Sánchez, Czech PM Andrej Babiš, Slovenian PM Janez Janša, Estonian PM Kristen Michal, Moldovan President Maia Sandu and NATO chief Mark Rutte, among others, Hans tells us.
What it boils down to: EU sanctions and deep strikes into Russia are taking a toll on Moscow’s economy. But are they enough? And if not, how can leaders change Putin’s thinking? Stay tuned.
20-SECOND PLAYBOOK PRIMER
The European Commission has asked Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, to change its designs, including by disabling features such as autoplay and infinite scroll, and implementing effective screen time breaks. But what happens if Meta doesn’t play ball? Meta could face fines up to 6 percent of annual revenue for breaching the EU’s Digital Services Act if it fails to meet the Commission’s demands. The tech giant will now examine the evidence the Commission has gathered against it and lay out its official defense.
DONOR FRICTION
TIME TO PICK A SIDE? Today’s Brussels meeting of the EU-backed Palestine Donor Group will put the Commission on the spot over two rival visions for Gaza’s future: the Trump-backed Board of Peace and the U.N. Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA). Pressure is mounting on the EU to signal where it stands, Gerardo Fortuna reports.
Bad blood: It’s the EU-backed Palestine Donor Group’s first meeting since the Board of Peace declared last week that “UNRWA has no place” in Gaza’s future, with Jeff Bartos, the U.S. ambassador for U.N. reform, branding the agency “a subsidiary of Hamas.” The U.S. initiative is positioning itself as an alternative to the existing U.N.-led aid architecture.
Full board: A U.S. official told my D.C. colleague Daniella Cheslow that Board of Peace members Aryeh Lightstone, Nickolay Mladenov and Ali Shaath will attend the Palestine Donor Group’s meeting in Brussels.
And UNRWA won’t be sidelined, with Commissioner-General Christian F. Saunders leading the agency’s delegation and addressing the plenary. The EU has worked with the U.N. body for decades now, delivering aid to millions of Palestinian refugees in Gaza. The bloc has already committed around €82 million a year for 2026 and 2027.
Speaking to Playbook, Saunders dismissed what he called the “false narrative” surrounding the agency. He said he would use today’s meeting to persuade “those within the Board of Peace that UNRWA needs to be an integral part” of Gaza’s recovery, due to its experienced workforce and established operational footprint on the ground.
We can help: “UNRWA can help the Board of Peace succeed in Gaza in implementing President Trump’s 20-point plan and U.N. Security Council Resolution 2803,” Saunders said.
What’s at stake: The Commission will be unveiling today the language of “early recovery” — carefully avoiding the politically loaded word “reconstruction.” The idea is to move beyond emergency aid through “rapid damage and needs assessment” — a methodology first deployed in Ukraine.
According to U.S. and EU officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, donors are expected to pledge around €1 billion for early recovery projects. Those projects would be approved by the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza but overseen by the Board of Peace.
Brussels’ line: The Commission is betting it can keep everyone on board. “The novelty of the Team Gaza Initiative is that participants and donors can use the financial channels they prefer and choose their own implementing partners,” one EU official told Playbook.
5 MORE THINGS GETTING US TALKING
BURNHAM VS. THE BLOB: The U.K.’s Andy Burnham is gearing up for a battle with Whitehall bureaucracy — and hoping it will help him stop Reform UK leader Nigel Farage.
THE SECRET TO FRANCE’S AI STRATEGY: Arthur Mensch, who runs Mistral AI, the hottest tech property of this year’s G7 host country, believes that France’s relatively cheap energy costs is a major competitive advantage in the AI race.
DIGITAL EURO GETS REAL: European lawmakers are sitting down with the Irish EU presidency today to kickstart talks on the Digital Euro and the broader single currency legislative package, with Economy Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis set to attend the trilogue. Our Morning Financial Services has the lowdown for subscribers.
FOOTBALL RACISM CLAIMS: Comments by former Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy that France’s World Cup team was “without Frenchman” — alluding to some players’ African origins — have sparked a backlash in both France and Spain.
MAGYAR UNFILTERED: The best advice given to Hungarian leader Péter Magyar at EU and NATO summits so far has come from the prime ministers of Belgium and Poland: “Resolutely, only forward.” We know this from Magyar’s Reddit Ask Me Anything session on Saturday, followed for us by Jonas Loesel, in which the Hungarian prime minister also tipped Argentina to win the World Cup and revealed he traveled with Wizz Air to save money.