Two very different images unfolded today at the port of Rhodes on the occasion of the arrival of the cruise ship Crown Iris, which was carrying some 660 Israeli tourists to the island.

On the one hand, representatives of local authorities and institutions warmly welcomed the visitors, offering them traditional sweets and treats in a symbolic gesture of welcome, rodiaki.gr.

The reception was attended by, among others, the mayor of Rhodes, Alexandros Koliadis, the deputy regional governor, Apostolos Asprakis, as well as representatives of the island’s tourism and business community.

An hour earlier, outside the port, dozens of demonstrators held a protest rally condemning Israel’s military policy in the Gaza Strip. The protest resulted in 15 arrests, of which 8 turned into arrests. Those arrested are charged, on occasion, with violence against employees and violation of the anti-racism law.

The protesters’ mobilization was pre-announced online, leading authorities to implement heightened security measures. Riot squads and coast guard forces were deployed inside and outside the port to prevent possible tensions with tourists.

It is noteworthy that among those arrested was former Rhodes city councillor and Eleuthera Eleftherias politician Evangelia Panai, who published a video of her detention area.

The implementation of the anti-racist law had already been announced by the Minister of Civil Protection, Michalis Chrysochoidis, in a statement on a similar incident in Syros. The minister had made it clear that those who attempt to prevent the entry of third-country nationals into Greece would be prosecuted.