Author: Haris Stathoti

Paris/Jakarta (24/7 – 28.57). “Coffee is the common man’s gold, and like gold, it brings to every person the feeling of luxury and nobility.” – Sheik-Abd-al-Kadir A friend recently opened a coffee shop is called after its owner, Muteeya. Though modest, it embodies the burgeoning coffee culture found in Paris, London, the US, and now Jakarta. The coffee is steaming hot, and soft tunes fill the air. Outside, rain pounds against the window, streaking down and forming small puddles on the street. As I gaze through the glass blurred by water, I take a sip of my warm coffee,…

Russia has reportedly lost a staggering amount of troops over the past 24 hours along with dozens of tanks and armoured vehicles as bloody fighting takes its toll on Vladimir Putin’s men. Russia lost a staggering 1,740 troops in a single day, the highest tally of casualties for Moscow since the start of the invasion in 2022, according to Ukraine. In the previous 24 hours, Ukraine also claimed Russia had lost 30 tanks and 42 armoured vehicles. Death toll and military hardware statistics are difficult to assess with both sides giving different or little information. However, Ukraine’s armed forces have claimed Russia has so far lost an eye-watering…

Most dismissed retired IDF general Yitzhak Brick’s warning earlier this year of a Hamas invasion. Now Netanyahu wants his advice on how to win. Yitzhak Brick might be the only Israeli military official to see what was coming. And he’s been warning of it for some time. He also does not see a ground invasion of Gaza as the only option. And Israel must prepare for a multi-front war given the situation in the north. Brick cautioned, among other things, of problems with the competence of ground forces and made it clear that the ground invasion does not have to be…

Turkish authorities have detained seven people with alleged ties to the faith-based Gülen movement while attempting to flee to neighboring Greece, the pro-government Daily Sabah reported on Thursday. The detainees were apprehended by troops on patrol in the border areas of northwestern Edirne province, according to the report. The police also detained five other suspected Gülen followers across the country, the report said. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has been targeting followers of the Gülen movement, inspired by Turkish Muslim cleric Fethullah Gülen, since the corruption investigations of December 17-25, 2013, which implicated then-prime minister Erdoğan, his family members and his inner…

The Greek government has asked the Super League to hold championship matches without spectators for two months because of the risk of trouble.  This measure, announced by government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis on Monday after a meeting at Maximos Mansion on Sunday, follows serious clashes involving sports fans that resulted in a police officer being critically injured by a flare. The ban will also apply to the home games of the B-teams in Super League 2 affiliated with the corresponding clubs in Super League 1. Marinakis said that the fan ban might be selectively expanded to the home matches of Greek…

SolarPower Europe, the trade body representing the European solar industry, has published a report forecasting the next four years of solar power on the continent, headlined by the fact that European solar developers are on track to install a record 56GW of new solar capacity in 2023. The report, ‘European Market Outlook for Solar Power 2023-2027’, forecasts that installed solar capacity in Europe will grow by 40% between 2022 and 2023, the third consecutive year in which year-on-year capacity additions increased by at least 40%. While the group expects the rate of new installations to slow down in 2024, expecting…

Syriza defectors accuse leader Stefanos Kasselakis of ‘authoritarian behavior.’ Greece’s main opposition party Syriza continues to dissolve, with another exodus of members, accusing the party leader of “authoritarian behavior.” Nine lawmakers, including ex-ministers and senior party officials, announced on Thursday they are leaving the party, leaving Syriza with just 36 MPs in the 300-seat parliament, just four more than the third party, the socialist Pasok party. The radical left-wing Syriza party gained Europe-wide notoriety at the peak of the financial crisis in 2015, winning power on a promise to end and reverse the fiscal austerity imposed by the country’s creditors…

Europeans are generally open to the idea of Ukraine joining the EU, despite the costs and risks, but lukewarm at best about the bloc’s prospective enlargement to also take in Georgia and countries in the western Balkans, according to a survey. The European Commission recommended last month that formal accession talks begin with Ukraine and Moldova. The EU’s 27 heads of government are due to discuss the proposal at a Brussels summit this week – although Hungary’s prime minister, Viktor Orbán, has repeatedly said he opposes opening negotiations with Kyiv. Long on the back burner, enlargement has become an urgent EU priority since Russia launched its war on…

Ancient Greeks called quince “the golden apple;” this fruit, which has high nutritional value and medicinal qualities also symbolized love in ancient times. The quince season lasts from October to December. It is then when the yellow fruit that looks like something between an apple and a pear is at its ripest and is ideal for use in sweet recipes. When eaten raw, it is dry and actually tastes sour or bitter. Generally it is cooked, and if cooked with the right ingredients, it can be used in delicious sweets and an array of other dishes. More importantly, this “golden…

Africans and Ancient Greeks had long, rich history together often reflected in the depiction of Africa in Ancient Greek art. The first contact between Greeks and Africans was sometime during the Bronze Age. At this time, the Minoan culture on Crete flourished and their shipbuilding skills enabled them to travel to far-flung places such as Africa. It was Homer (8th century BC) however who made the earliest mention in the Iliad and the Odyssey. “Zeus went yesterday to Ocean to a feast with the blameless Ethiopians, and all the gods followed” Thetis says to Achilles. (Iliad 1.423-424) It was thus that the great Ancient Greek poet…