Sydney - Australian mobster Tony Mokbel began serving a 12- year jail sentence for cocaine-trafficking Saturday after his extradition from Greece.

Athens  - Strikes by union groups upset by Greek government privatisation plans and pension reforms disrupted air transport and state services on Thursday.

Athens  - Ships will remain anchored at ports across Greece and air transport is expected to be disrupted on Thursday after union groups Wednesday called a
24-hour nationwide strike to protest against government privatisation plans.

Hundreds of ships are expected to remain anchored at the ports of Pireaus near Athens and in the northern port city of Thessaloniki while bank and hospital workers will also walk off the job.

Athens  - Petrol pumps across Greece dried up on Monday as fuel truck drivers continued their week-long strike in an effort to press for higher distribution fees.

Athens/Nicosia  - Cypriot President Dimitris Christofias on Friday said working and technical groups from both sides of the divided Mediterranean island were having problems trying to narrow their

Athens/Nicosia  -  Greek and Turkish Cypriot leaders will meet each other on a social level Wednesday, the first time since breakthrough talks took place in March.