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Australian tourist dies after beating in Greece

01 Aug 2008 16:16:43 GMT
Source: Reuters

ATHENS, Aug 1 (Reuters) - Greek doctors declared a 20-year-old Australian man dead on Friday, three days after a brutal beating on the Mediterranean island of Mykonos which prompted the government to target rising crime at resorts.

Doujon Zammit from Sydney was confirmed dead at 1330 local time (1030 GMT), doctors at the Errikos Dynan hospital in Athens said in a statement. Zammit had travelled with friends to the popular Aegean island on holiday.

"After his parents were informed, they decided to donate his heart to an Australian citizen hospitalised at the Onassis (heart) Hospital," the statement said.

His parents had asked that his other organs also be given to patients needing transplants, the statement said.

Police detained four nightclub employees after Zammit was beaten with a metal bar outside a club on Mykonos. One of the suspects testified that he believed Zammit had stolen a handbag inside the club, police officials said.

Responding to the attack, Tourist Minister Aris Spiliotopoulos launched a special committee on Thursday to clean up the tourist sector, which accounts for nearly a fifth of the economy.

The opposition Socialist party criticised the ruling centre-right New Democracy party for not giving police the resources to deal with the annual tourist deluge.

Greece welcomes around 15 million tourists a year -- nearly a fifth of them British -- but several of its coastal resorts have acquired a reputation for violent and indecent behaviour among young holidaymakers. (Reporting by Daniel Flynn; Editing by Giles Elgood)

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