Greek PM reshuffles cabinet as EU aid farm fraud probe widens

By Renee Maltezou and Angeliki Koutantou

ATHENS, April 3 (Reuters) - Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis reshuffled his cabinet on Friday, as he seeks to limit the fallout ‌from a growing scandal over alleged fraud related to European Union farm funds.

Last year ‌European prosecutors charged dozens of Greek stockbreeders with faking ownership of pastureland to claim millions of euros in EU ​subsidies, allegedly with the help of state employees and conservative politicians.

The affair had already prompted ministerial resignations and led the European Union last year to impose a hefty fine on the country over mismanagement of the subsidies by its OPEKEPE payment agency.

But in a move that widened the ‌investigation, the European Chief Prosecutor on ⁠Wednesday asked the Greek parliament to lift the immunity of at least 11 lawmakers, including ministers, so they can be investigated over their alleged ⁠roles in the scheme.

The EU prosecutor has not named the lawmakers and ministers, who are protected from prosecution by the constitution unless parliament lifts their immunity. A minister and four senior officials in ​the government ​resigned last year for their alleged role in ​the fraud.

On Friday, Mitsotakis appointed Margaritis ‌Schinas, a former European Commission vice-president for Promoting the European Way of Life, as agriculture minister.

Schinas, a former member of the European Parliament as well as a long-serving Commission official, replaces Kostas Tsiaras.

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Evangelos Tournas, a retired Greek air force officer, was named climate crisis and civil protection minister, replacing Giannis Kefalogiannis. Earlier, a deputy health minister, a party secretary and the government's parliamentary ‌spokesman had resigned.

Mitsotakis' New Democracy party holds 156 seats ​in Greece's 300-seat parliament.

The latest probe concerns alleged crimes ​against the EU's financial interests in ​2021, including instigation of breach of trust, computer fraud and false attestation ‌with the intent to obtain an unlawful ​benefit.

The OPEKEPE agency handles ​more than 2 billion euros ($2.31 billion) in annual EU farm aid.

Opposition parties dismissed the reshuffle and renewed calls for early elections.

"No reshuffle can save a government built around a ​majority of people investigated by ‌the judiciary," the Socialist PASOK party, the main opposition, said in a statement.

The ​new cabinet members will be sworn in on Saturday.

($1 = 0.8662 euros)

(Reporting by Renee ​Maltezou and Angeliki Koutantou; Editing by Ros Russell)

byCristiano Ronaldo

in

April 03, 2026

Greek PM reshuffles cabinet as EU aid farm fraud probe widens

By Renee Maltezou and Angeliki Koutantou ATHENS, April 3 (Reuters) - Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis ...

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Affiliate of Iranian state TV claims a US pilot ejected from their aircraft over southwestern Iran

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A channel affiliated with Iranian state television claimed Friday that a U.S. fighter pilot ejected from their aircraft oversouthwestern Iran. The U.S. did not respond immediately to requests for comment on the claim.

APTOPIX Iran War

It was not clear what may have happened to the plane, including whether Iran was claiming it was shot down or had another issue. If the claim is confirmed, it could lead to yet another dramatic escalation in the war, nearing the end of its fifth week.

Iran fired on targets across the Mideast on Friday, as Tehran kept the pressure on Israel and its Gulf Arab neighbors, despite U.S. and Israeli insistence thatIran's military capabilitieshave been all but destroyed.

Iran's attacks on Gulf energy infrastructure and itstight grip on the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's oil and natural gas transits in peacetime, have roiled stock markets, sent oil prices skyrocketing, and threatened to raise the cost of many basic goods, including food.

Television anchor urges residents to hand over pilot

The anchor on the Iranian channel urged residents to hand over any "enemy pilot" to police and promised a reward for anyone who did. The channel is in Kohkilouyeh and Boyer-Ahmad province, an intensely rural and mountainous region that spans over 15,500 square kilometers (5,900 square miles).

Authorities also urged the public to search for the pilot in neighboring Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province.

Throughout the war, Iran has made a series of claims about shooting down piloted enemy aircraft that turned out not to be true. Friday was the first time that Iran went on television urging the public to look for a suspected downed pilot.

An on-screen crawl earlier urged the public to "shoot them if you see them," referring to social media footage circulating of what appeared to be U.S. aircraft in the area. The channel showed metal debris in the back of a pickup truck while making the announcement but provided no other immediate details.

Iran targets a desalination plant and a refinery

The claim came after Kuwait's Mina al-Ahmadi oil refinery came under Iranian attack, and the state-run Kuwait Petroleum Corp. said firefighters were working to control several blazes.

Kuwait also said an Iranian attack caused "material damage" to a desalination plant. Such plants are responsible for most of the drinking water for Gulf states, and they have become a major target in the war.

Sirens also sounded in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia said it had destroyed several Iranian drones, and Israel reported incoming missiles.

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Authorities in the United Arab Emirates shut down a gas field after a missile interception reportedly rained debris on it and started a fire.

Activists reported strikes around Tehran and the central city of Isfahan, but it wasn't immediately clear what was hit. A day earlier, Iran said the U.S. hit a major bridge, which was still under construction,killing eight people.

In Lebanon, where Israel has launched a ground invasion in its fight with the pro-Iranian Hezbollah militant group, an Israeli drone strike on worshippers leaving Friday prayers near Beirut killed two people, according to the state‑run National News Agency

More than 1,900 people have been killed in Iran since the war began on Feb. 28 with U.S. and Israeli strikes. In a review released Friday, the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data, a U.S.-based group, said it found that civilian casualties were clustered around strikes on security and state-linked sites "rather than indiscriminate bombardment" of urban areas.

More than two dozen people have died in Gulf states and the occupied West Bank, 19 have been reported dead in Israel, and 13 U.S.service membershave been killed.

More than 1,300 peoplehave been killedand more than 1 million displaced in Lebanon. Ten Israeli soldiers have also died there.

Iran is keeping a chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz

World leadershave struggledto end Iran's stranglehold on the strait, which has had far-reaching consequences for the global economy and has proved to be itsgreatest strategic advantagein the war.The U.N. Security Council wasexpected to take up the matteron Saturday.U.S. President Donald Trump has vacillated on America's role in the strait, alternately threatening Iran if it doesn't open the waterway and telling other nations to "go get your own oil." On Friday, he said in a post on social media that, "With a little more time, we can easily OPEN THE HORMUZ STRAIT, TAKE THE OIL, & MAKE A FORTUNE."Spot prices of Brent crude, the international standard, were around $109 Friday, up more than 50% since the start of the war, when Iran began restricting traffic through the strait.Iran's former top diplomat suggests terms to end the war

World leadershave struggledto end Iran's stranglehold on the strait, which has had far-reaching consequences for the global economy and has proved to be itsgreatest strategic advantagein the war.

The U.N. Security Council wasexpected to take up the matteron Saturday.

U.S. President Donald Trump has vacillated on America's role in the strait, alternately threatening Iran if it doesn't open the waterway and telling other nations to "go get your own oil." On Friday, he said in a post on social media that, "With a little more time, we can easily OPEN THE HORMUZ STRAIT, TAKE THE OIL, & MAKE A FORTUNE."

Spot prices of Brent crude, the international standard, were around $109 Friday, up more than 50% since the start of the war, when Iran began restricting traffic through the strait.

Former Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif — a diplomat with long experience negotiating with the West who remains close to a pragmatic wing of Iran's leadership — wrote on Friday in Foreign Affairs magazine that the time has come to end what he referred to as a stalemate.

The U.S. and Iran have proposed dueling plans, and Zarif's proposal included elements of both in a sign part of Iran's leadership might be willing to negotiate.

Iran "should offer to place limits on its nuclear program and to reopen the Strait of Hormuz in exchange for an end to all sanctions — a deal Washington wouldn't take before but might accept now," he wrote.

It's not clear how much to read into the proposal from Zarif, who has no official position in Iran's government, but would likely not have published such a piece without at least some authorization from senior leaders.

Rising reported from Bangkok. Associated Press writers Sylvie Corbet in Paris, Sarah El Deeb in Beirut, Tong-hyung Kim in Seoul, South Korea, and Michelle L. Price in Washington contributed to this report.

byCristiano Ronaldo

in

April 03, 2026

Affiliate of Iranian state TV claims a US pilot ejected from their aircraft over southwestern Iran

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A channel affiliated with Iranian state television claimed Friday that a U.S. fighter ...

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UNC coaching search looms over Final Four — ask Kansas how that goes

North Carolinaneeded a basketball coach, and it set its sights on one in the Final Four.

Its top target had a good job. A darn good one, and one newspaper columnist felt adamant Roy Williams wouldn't leaveKansas, even if his alma mater tried to call him home to Carolina. Williams already turned down UNC once before, a few years previously.

No way Roy's going to Carolina.

So read the headline ofJoe Posnanski's columnin the Kansas City Star on April 2, 2003. Two weeks later, Posnanski wrote another column about how he got it all wrong. He trusted a coach to have loyalty. Whoops, rookie mistake.

If we've learned one thing in the more than two decades since then, it's to never say never when it comes to these situations, and that a coach's loyalty is the underdog when matched up against his ego.

Now here we are at anotherFinal Four, and UNC's hiring, and it's déjà vu, with stay-or-go questionshovering over the coaches of the two favored teams in Indianapolis.

Iowa State Cyclones fans cheer against the Kentucky Wildcats during the first half in the second round of the 2026 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Enterprise Center on March 22, 2026 in St Louis, Missouri.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> Nebraska's Berke Buyuktuncel celebrates with fans following a second-round game in the NCAA men's basketball tournament between Nebraska Cornhuskers and Vanderbilt Commodores at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City on March 21, 2026.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> Arkansas Razorbacks cheerleaders in the second half against the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors during a first round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Moda Center on March 19, 2026 in Portland, Ore.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> A Texas Christian University Horned Frogs cheerleader practices before the game during a first round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Bon Secours Wellness Arena on March 19, 2026 in Greenville, SC.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" />

See best of March Madness 2026, from mascots and fans to celebrities

Iowa State Cyclones fans cheer against the Kentucky Wildcats during the first half in the second round of the2026 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournamentat Enterprise Center on March 22, 2026 in St Louis, Missouri.

Tommy Lloyd fuels speculation about UNC job

This time, nobody's writing there's "no way"Tommy Lloyd would leave Arizona for UNC. That doesn't mean Lloyd will definitely bolt, but even he's not saying he won't. Lloyd himself fed into speculation he's a prime option for UNC when he said, "Arizona's going to have another good coach after me, I promise you." And, when will Arizona need to hire its next coach? Will that be next week? Next year? Ten years from now?

No telling. At least, Lloyd's not telling, other than to say he's "present in the moment" and that neither he nor his players are distracted by UNC speculation.

He's probably right about his players, anyway.

Arizona's Brayden Burries, Koa Peat and Motiejus Krivas are projected first-round NBA Draft picks. Wildcats point guard Jaden Bradley is a senior. They're out the door after this Final Four, regardless of Lloyd's decision. A fifth starter, Ivan Kharchenkov, might return for another college season, but thanks to the transfer portal, he could follow his coach if Lloyd decided to leave. No stress. No fuss. No distraction.

Twenty-three years ago, KU star Wayne Simien expressed open frustration when Williams jilted the Jayhawks for North Carolina. Now, athletes better understand it's not personal, it's just business, because players field interest from other high-paying suitors, too, and face business decisions of their own.

Is Dusty May more of a 'Michigan man' than Bill Frieder?

While we're on the subject of déjà vu, here's Michigan with a team that can win it all, but willcoach Dusty Mayprove himself a "Michigan man" or a renegade?

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If UNC would like to have Lloyd, then it shouldloveto have May. He's now a veteran of Final Fours, having led Florida Atlantic there in 2023.

Toppmeyer:Dusty May so good, you almost forget Sherrone Moore — now, UNC needs him

Perhaps, Michigan can breathe slightly easier than Arizona's administration, because at least May isn't talking about how great Michigan's next coach is going to be.

Even if May wouldn't leave Michigan for UNC, the Tar Heels could cause a domino effect that results in May leaving Michigan. Just as the Wolverines lost John Beilein to the Cleveland Cavaliers, May has the goods of a future NBA coach. Andif UNC hires Billy Donovan, well, then the Chicago Bulls will need a coach, won't they?

Michigan knows what it's like for a coach to spurn it. When Bill Frieder accepted the Arizona State job ahead of the 1989 NCAA Tournament, Bo Schembechler promptly booted Frieder and promoted Steve Fisher, explaining his decision with the now-famous line that, "A Michigan man is going to coach Michigan."

The lesson Frieder provided: If you're leaving for another job, maybe don't tell anyone until the NCAA Tournament is finished.

Worked out great for Michigan. Fisher led the Wolverines to a national championship.

Never mind a Michigan man. The Wolverines would do well to keep their Indiana man. May got his start as a student manager under Bob Knight, but Frieder proved a coach's alma mater doesn't mean everything to everyone, even if Mama lured Williams home in 2003.

"I was a Tar Heel born. When I die, I'll be a Tar Heel dead," Williams said after he took the UNC job.

In between, he became a turncoat at Kansas.

We learned then that when North Carolina wants to hire a Final Four coach, it's naïve to think, "no way."

Blake Toppmeyeris a columnist for the USA TODAY Network. Email him atBToppmeyer@gannett.comand follow him on X@btoppmeyer.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Tommy Lloyd, Dusty May would be great for UNC — if they pull a Roy Williams

byCristiano Ronaldo

in

April 03, 2026

UNC coaching search looms over Final Four — ask Kansas how that goes

North Carolinaneeded a basketball coach, and it set its sights on one in the Final Four. Its top target had a ...

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