Greek voters overwhelmingly rejected a bailout-extension that would prolong or increase austerity measures, with more than 61% voting "Oxi," the Greek word for no. The result, which was followed by large celebrations across Greece is a major defeat for the European Union and the Eurogroup, where leaders had insisted a "no" vote would mean Greece leaving the single currency area. Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras hailed the vote, and said his country was instead ready to return to the negotiating table to try to find a deal that would keep Greece in the Eurozone. See how 37 newspapers around Europe and the worldfeatured the Greek story.
- In an unexpected development, Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis announced early Monday morning that he was stepping down from his post, despite Syriza's clear victory. "I was made aware of a certain preference by some Eurogroup participants, and assorted ‘partners', for my… ‘absence' from its meetings," Varoufakis wrote in a blog post entitled "Minister no more," suggesting Eurozone pressures had led him to resign and suggesting the move might help Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras in the upcoming negotiations. His expected replacement is Oxford-educated economist Euclid Tsakalotos, who has had a lead role coordinating negotiations. Tsakalotos is said to be closer to Syriza's left and more radical than his predecessor.
- It's still unclear whether Greek banks will reopen Tuesday as planned and a European Central Bank decision on whether to continue providing liquidity to Greek banks will be crucial.
- The reaction of other Eurogroup leaders at a meeting tomorrow will also indicate if a new, austerity-free deal and a debt relief are possible, with Germany particularly eager to avoid a Greek-scenario in other struggling and debt-ridden economies such as Spain, Portugal, Ireland and Italy. A spokesman for the German government said that it was up to Greece to make new proposals, but ruled out a debt cut.
- Analysts believe that yesterday's vote has increased the possibility of a Grexit. In his New York Times column, Nobel Prize economist Paul Krugman goes one step further and says leaving the Eurozone would be "the only plausible escape route from Greece's endless economic nightmare."
WORLDCRUNCH-TO-GO
Writing in leading French business daily Les Echos Nicolas Barré warns of the consequences of Sunday's ‘No' vote in Greece. "The result is disastrous. From now on, the European Central Bank (ECB) is on the front line, having to play the firefighter for a state that deems the debts it owes to its European neighbors illegitimate, but is also in a rush, every day, like it did again on Sunday evening, to ask the ECB a few extra billions to save its banks.This performance cannot go on. If a referendum took place in Europe, how many countries would still accept to support Greece?" Read the full article: Greece, The Tragic Meaning Of That "No"
U.S. TEAM WINS WOMEN'S WORLD CUP
The United States won the Women's Soccer World Cup, beating Japan in Sunday's final 5-2.
BAGHDAD ACCIDENTALLY BOMBED
At least seven people were killed in Baghdad this morning after an Iraqi warplane bombed the capital by mistake. Security officials quoted by AFP blamed "technical problems."
IRAN NUCLEAR DEAL IN SIGHT?
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said a deal with Iran on the country's nuclear energy program could be reached by Tuesday's target date, though progress still has to be made "on several of the most difficult issues,"The New York Times quotes him as saying. Speaking from Vienna, he warned that "this negotiation could go either way." Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif expressed similar feelings late yesterday and said negotiators were "making efforts to resolve some remaining differences," news agency Tasnim reports.
BOKO HARAM BOMBS CAP BLOODY WEEK
A twin explosion at a crowded mosque and a Muslim restaurant in the central Nigerian city of Jos yesterday evening killed at least 44 people, AP reports, citing an emergency agency official. The attack, believed to have been carried out by Islamist group Boko Haram, came hours after a suicide bomber killed 5 worshippers in a church in the country's northeastern region. About 250 people have died in Boko Haram attacks over the past week.
1 MILLION
Pope Francis arrived yesterday in Ecuador where he will today celebrate a mass that is expected to draw more than 1 million worshippers. The nine-day Latin American tour will then take the pontiff to Bolivia and Paraguay.
MORE DILMA-SPYING REVELATIONS
The NSA's spying on Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff went beyond her personal phone and included the presidential plane's telephone as well as the numbers of top political and financial officials, Wikileaks and The Intercept's Glenn Greenwald reported on Saturday. The revelation is ill-timed for Dilma, coming just one day after she returned from a week-long visit to the U.S., two years after cancelling a similar state visit following initial revelations she was spied on.
ANTI-ISIS COALITION BOMBS GROUP'S SYRIAN "CAPITAL"
The U.S.-led anti-ISIS coalition conducted a series of airstrikes in the ISIS Syrian stronghold of Raqqa that CBS News says were "rare in their intensity" with 16 reported strikes. At least 23 ISIS fighters were killed in the attack, the BBC quotes the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights as saying. The Syrian army is meanwhile gaining ground on the western front, with AFP reporting that troops backed by Lebanon's Shia Muslim group Hezbollah are moving closer to taking the last city on the Lebanese border held by their opponents.
ON THIS DAY
French researcher Louis Pasteur and American rapper 50 Cent are part of our 57-second history report for July 6.
VERBATIM
"Please, be kind," The Grateful Dead's Mickey Hart told the audience in Chicago, closing up what the legendary band said would be their last concert. Read the full story from The New York Times.
BLATTER BLASTS SARKOZY AND WULFF
In an interview with Germany's Welt am Sonntag, FIFA President Sepp Blatter (who may or may not be on his way out later this year as a corruption probe around him tightens) said former French and German Presidents Nicolas Sarkozy and Christian Wulff influenced the December 2010 vote that awarded Qatar the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Read more in English from France 24.
