Greece deports foreign students involved in anti-Israel protests

In response to escalating anti-Israel protests on university campuses, the Greek government announced the deportation of nine international students from the UK and European Union member states. They were detained after a rally in solidarity with Palestine at the Athens College of Law on May 14.

A total of 28 people were arrested during the protest and face charges including disorderly conduct, property damage, trespassing, and weapons and flares violations. Among those detained, nine foreign nationals are classified as “undesirables”, considered a threat to public order and national security, requiring their deportation.

Lawyers representing the detained students plan to challenge the deportation at a trial in Athens. They argue that the right to free movement for European citizens should not be limited to tourists and investors, but should extend to political actions, including those related to Palestine. The detainees are currently being held at the Amygdaleza detention center.

In a statement to Al Jazeera, the detainees called deportation a last resort for the “crime” of being at the university. They criticized the Greek government's response as an overreaction and emphasized the broader context of their protest against what they called genocide.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, leader of the New Democracy party, confirmed that the government will not allow university protests over Israeli actions in Gaza. In 2019, the Mitsotakis administration repealed a law banning security forces from entering university campuses, a measure originally adopted following the brutal crackdown on student protests during the military dictatorship in 1973.

The Greek government's position towards Israel has varied over the years, moving from a historically pro-Palestinian position to a more pro-Israel one, mainly due to strategic alliances in the eastern Mediterranean involving Greece, Israel and Cyprus. Despite this political stance, there has been a noticeable increase in support for the Palestinian movement among Greek youth, with several protests taking place across Greece in recent months.

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