Greek Golden Dawn leader, MPs arrested

GREEK police have arrested the leader and other top officials of the anti-immigrant Golden Dawn party on charges of forming a criminal organisation.

The arrests are an escalation of a government crackdown after a fatal stabbing allegedly committed by a supporter.

It is the first time since 1974 that a party head and sitting members of parliament have been arrested.

Police announced the arrests of 16 Golden Dawn members, including party head Nikos Michaloliakos, spokesman Ilias Kasidiaris and two other MPs.

The arrests included a local Golden Dawn leader in an Athens suburb while the rest were ordinary members.

Two police officials said an operation by the counterterrorism unit was still ongoing on Saturday morning, with a total of about 35 arrest warrants for Golden Dawn members issued.

They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not permitted to speak publicly.

Despite the arrests, the party's MPs retain their parliamentary seats unless they are convicted of a crime.

Golden Dawn holds 18 of parliament's 300 seats, after winning nearly 7 per cent of the vote in general elections last year.

Michaloliakos had earlier threatened to pull the group's deputies out of parliament, a move that would prompt by-elections in 15 regions around the country.

"We will exhaust any means within our legal constitutional rights to defend our political honour," Michaloliakos said on Thursday.

"If the country enters a cycle of instability, it is those who demonise Golden Dawn who will be responsible, not (us)," he said.

The arrests come 11 days after the killing of anti-fascist activist rapper Pavlos Fyssas by an alleged Golden Dawn member.

Though the party has vehemently denied any role in the killing, the case has appeared to dent its appeal among Greeks and the government has worked to crack down on the party.

Golden Dawn expressed outrage at the arrests in a text message to journalists.

"We call upon everyone to support our moral and just struggle against the corrupt system! Everyone come to our offices!," it said.

A later text message called for supporters to head to police headquarters "with calm and order".

A small group of about 30 people initially gathered, standing on the footpath across the street from the building.

Golden Dawn entered the Greek parliament for the first time in May 2012, capitalising on Greece's deep financial crisis, rising crime and anti-immigrant sentiment.

The party's members and supporters have frequently been suspected of carrying out violent attacks, mainly against immigrants.

Despite its reputation for violence, the party had enjoyed growing popularity.

A government spokesman refused to comment on the details of the operation.

"Democracy can protect itself. Justice will do its job," Simos Kedikoglou told reporters.

In addition to Michaloliakos and Kasidiaris, Golden Dawn deputy, Ilias Panayiotaros, gave himself up at police headquarters, telling police they were looking for him at a wrong address.

Another MP, Yannis Lagos, has also been arrested.

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Tunisia's ruling Islamists to step down

TUNISIA'S governing Islamist party has agreed to step down following negotiations with opposition parties that begin next week.

A spokesman for the main labour union said months of talks with the Islamist-led government had finally reached an agreement on Saturday. Bouali Mbarki of the UGTT union said the deal calls for three weeks of negotiations to appoint an interim, non-partisan government.

Tunisia has endured more than two years of turmoil, worsened by the assassination of a leading opposition figure in July.

As recently as a week ago, the union, which represents 500,000 workers, said talks on a way out of the country's political impasse had failed.

The union, the opposition, lawyers and human rights advocates had said the governing Ennahda Party's inability to ensure security led to the killings of one opposition figure in July and another one in February.

The death of Mohammed Brahmi, who was gunned down in front of his family on July 25, plunged Tunisia into its current crisis, as dozens of opposition MPs quit, freezing efforts to write a new constitution. Street protests and political paralysis have crippled the country.

Tunisia's protesters, inspired by the self-immolation of a fruit seller, overthrew their decades-old authoritarian government in January 2011. Those protests spread through the Arab world, including to Egypt, Syria and neighbouring Libya.

The opposition has accused the Ennahda Party of being overly tolerant of a rising radical Islamist trend that has shown violent tendencies in its efforts to instill greater piety.

Before the 2011 fall of Tunisia's longtime dictator, the country had been known as one of the most secular countries in the Arab world.

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Greenpeace piracy probe worries parents

THE parents of a British journalist held in Russia for suspected piracy after a Greenpeace protest at an Arctic oil rig say they are extremely worried.

A group of 30, including six Britons and Australian Colin Russell, were held last week when armed Russian officials boarded their vessel, the Arctic Sunrise and took it to the port of Murmansk.

A Russian court refused bail to and jailed for two months a number of activists and freelance videographer Keiron Bryan, from Devon.

They have not been charged, though Russian authorities are investigating charges of piracy, which carry a jail term of 10 to 15 years.

Mr Bryan's parents, Andy and Ann Bryan, issued a statement on Saturday saying they were "extremely worried".

"Our son is a very kind, caring individual and environmental issues have always been very close to his heart," the couple from Devon said.

"He would sympathise with the cause but he was simply there doing his job as a freelance videographer.

"None of those on board should be subjected to this prolonged period of detention. They are extremely brave, caring individuals who were peacefully protesting to bring the world's attention to the dangers of drilling in that particular area and of the serious consequences it could have on that already fragile environment.

"We are told that they are being treated fairly and are all well, for which we are extremely grateful.

"However, the fact that they are still there at all is a farce and quite out of proportion to their actions."

From Britain, activists Philip Ball and Sydney resident Alexandra Harris, videographer Mr Bryan and second engineer Iain Roger have been detained for two months pending a piracy investigation. Mr Russell has also been detained for two months.

Two other Britons, Frank Hewetson and Anthony Perrett, were detained for three days pending a hearing on Sunday.

Greenpeace is campaigning against attempts by companies to drill for oil in the waters of the Arctic, warning that a spill would be highly environmentally damaging and extraction of more fossil fuels will add to climate change.

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