Posted on 08/27/2007 4:11:41 PM PDT by mastercylinder
A group of 25 Israeli firefighters were on the first plane to Greece on Monday after a desperate appeal by the Greek government for assistance in fighting one of the worst outbreaks of wildfire ever to hit the country. The Israeli contingent is the largest of those sent by a total of eight nations.
At least 56 people have died in the fires that have ravaged various parts of the country since Friday. Worst affected was the Zaharo area of the Peloponnese in southern Greece, the scene of most of the deaths.
Tragedy also struck on the island of Evia, north of Athens, where five people were killed and two others injured.
A massive effort by firefighters stopped the rampaging blaze just short of the historic site of Olympia, where the Olympic Games first began. A local fire brigade spokesman said grimly, The fire reached the hill overlooking ancient Olympia but was stopped just before entering the archaeological site.
The spokesman said "six planes, two helicopters, 15 fire engines and 45 firemen participated" in the massive effort to contain the blaze on the hillside. The mammoth scope of the destruction prompted Greek Prime Minister Kostas Karamanlis to declare a national disaster. He ordered flags to be flown at half-mast on government buildings.
Germany, the Netherlands, Romania, Norway and Slovenia have also said they will send firefighting aircraft, although each has limited its contribution to one or two helicopters. Serbia is expected to send four firefighting planes, and Spain has said it will send two. Switzerland and Iceland also reportedly offered to assist in the effort.
I am not sure if that is true with regards to any disaster anywhere, but Greeks and Jews have a mutual affinity that I have experienced personally many times (being Jewish) which is very warm, very respectful, and seems to have a longstanding basis. Greece was one of my all-time favorite countries to travel in, btw. Fantastic!
"On September 20, 1943, Dieter Wisliceny -- a deputy of Adolph Eichmann, the administrator of the Nazi Final Solution -- arrived in Athens. Wisliceny ordered Chief Rabbi Elias Barzilai to appear before him, to provide accurate figures about the Jewish population in Athens and to create a Judernat. ... The Church of Greece, under Archbishop Damaskinos' leadership, condemned Hitler's plans for the country and instructed priests to announce its position in their sermons. ... When all official appeals to stop the deportations failed, Archbishop Damaskinos spearheaded a direct appeal to the Germans, in the form of a letter composed by the famous Greek poet Angelos Sikelianos and signed by prominent Greek citizens, in a bold attempt to appeal to the hearts and minds of the occupying authorities, in defense of the Jews who were being persecuted. The letter incited the rage of the Nazi general Stroop, who threatened the Archbishop with death by a firing squad. Damaskinos' response was, "According to the traditions of the Greek Orthodox Church, our prelates are hung and not shot. Please respect our traditions!" The appeal of the Archbishop and his fellow Greeks is unique; there is no similar document of protest of the Nazis during World War II that has come to light in any other European country. It reads, in part..(Anyone interested in reading the full letter, go to the link below): ~ The International Raoul Wallenberg Foundation
The International Raoul Wallenberg Foundation
Thank you, Israel. :-)
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