The Greek police is working on a plan to evacuate illegally occupied buildings around Athens and the rest of the country in the coming days.
Acknowledging the political will of the government, the leadership of the security forces is ready to commence the evacuation operations within the coming days, in an attempt to free many abandoned buildings occupied either by immigrants, or by left-wing activists.
According to reports, police forces will focus on buildings in the capital’s outer periphery at first, in an attempt to achieve evacuations with the least possible resistance from its occupants.
Official state data shows that 46 buildings are under illegal occupation, 25 of which are public property, 16 belong to private owners, one is under co-ownership by the state and a private owner, while the ownership of another 4 is unclear.
Since May 2017, the judicial authorities have ordered the evacuation of 10 occupied buildings. Police authorities have established an operational plan for their evacuation, but have been waiting for the OK from the government in order to proceed.
In one specific case concerning the illegal occupation of City Plaza hotel since April 2016, its owner, desperate by the authorities’ inaction, has sued both the Civil Protection deputy minister Nikos Toskas and the head of Greek Police Konstandinos Tsouvalas, for dereliction of duty.
