135 of them were arrested
Greek police detained 374 people on Sunday in the centre of Athens because of a ban on rallies on 6 December – the day to commemorate 15-year-old Alexis Grigoropoulos, who was shot and killed by a police officer in 2008. This was reported on Monday by the Macedonian Athens News Agency (AMNA), citing information from sources in the law enforcement agencies.
According to them, police have detained 374 people in downtown Athens as part of a ban on rallies and in violation of protection measures against the Coronavirus pandemic. Subsequently, 135 of these people were arrested. Most of the detentions took place in the central district of Excarchia, where clashes between representatives of leftist organisations and the special police force are common.
The rallies attended by young people were peaceful on Sunday, and people came with posters, recalling the 6th December 2008, when Alexis Grigoropoulos was killed by a police bullet. The police, following orders, dispersed any meetings and processions on Sunday, without even letting a delegation of teachers through to the monument to the teenager set up in the street at the site of his death.
The law enforcement authorities reported that an investigation had been initiated against a policeman who, judging by the video that appeared on social networks, destroyed a bouquet of flowers left at the site of the teenager’s murder.
The Greek police, citing the need to fight the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, banned rallies and processions on Saturday 6 December, the day of Grigoropoulos’ memory. It was announced that an administrative fine of €5,000 would be imposed on legal entities and €3,000 on individuals organising public meetings in the open air for violating the ban. Violators of the ban on participation in public open-air events will face an administrative fine of €300.