CRIMINALISATION OF SOLIDARITY
Greece: court drops espionage charges against humanitarian workers
On 13 January, a Greek appeals court dropped espionage charges against 24 activists who had helped asylum-seekers from Syria land safely in Lesbos in 2018, citing procedural errors and “overly vague charges”. The 24 aid workers still face an investigation into charges of people smuggling, fraud, membership of a criminal organisation, and money laundering; if condemned, they would risk up to 25 years in prison. Some of the defendants had already spent more than 100 days in pre-trial detention in 2018.
CRIMINALISATION OF SOLIDARITY
Greece: court drops espionage charges against humanitarian workers
On 13 January, a Greek appeals court dropped espionage charges against 24 activists who had helped asylum-seekers from Syria land safely in Lesbos in 2018, citing procedural errors and “overly vague charges”. The 24 aid workers still face an investigation into charges of people smuggling, fraud, membership of a criminal organisation, and money laundering; if condemned, they would risk up to 25 years in prison. Some of the defendants had already spent more than 100 days in pre-trial detention in 2018.