Greece's parliament has approved legislation legalising civil partnerships for gay couples, two years after the country was condemned by a European Court for discrimination.
In a result announced early today, lawmakers voted 193-56 in favour of the bill to extend civil partnerships to same-sex couples, but provisions regarding family law that could pave the way for adoption applications were dropped before the vote.
Conservative bishops in Greece's powerful Orthodox Church vehemently opposed the law, arguing that it undermined the institution of family.