A court in the northern city of Serres has sentenced 23 foreign nationals to prison terms of between 25 and 26 months and fined each 3,000 euros over violent disturbances at a closed asylum-seekers facility in northern Greece.
The incident took place Saturday night at the facility in the Kleidi site, within the municipality of Sintiki, near the Greek-Bulgarian border.
The single-justice misdemeanor court ruled that the sentences would neither be suspended nor converted to alternative penalties. The judge also decided that any appeal would not have a suspensive effect, meaning the convicted men will be taken to correctional facilities to serve their sentences.
The 23 defendants, all identified as citizens of Bangladesh and Egypt, were convicted of escape or attempted escape, rioting and aggravated property damage.
Two additional defendants are included in the case file but were not tried under the expedited procedure. They are expected to face trial separately after the case file is submitted to the Serres prosecutor’s office.
According to police, the disturbances began when a group of detainees attacked police sentries with stones and other objects. Rioters also damaged parts of the facility and its perimeter fencing. Reports in Greek media said the specific site hosts foreign nationals who illegally entered the country and subsequently requested asylum but were rejected and now face deportation to their home countries.
Some of the detainees managed to cut through the wire mesh and escape from the facility.
Police said 15 people escaped during the incident and remain at large. Five foreign nationals were injured during the disturbances.
A large police operation was mobilized to contain the unrest and secure the facility.
The Mitsotakis government has increasingly emphasized stricter controls and security measures at such facilities as it seeks to manage irregular migration and prevent unauthorized departures.
