On 17 September 2025, journalist Stavroula Poulimeni published on alterthess.gr a complaint by an employee of a Non‑Governmental Organisation (NGO) concerning repeated “racist attacks against unaccompanied minors living in refugee accommodation structures in Thessaloniki.”
According to the complaint, verbal assaults and bullying have been reported by unaccompanied minor refugees living in facilities in Oreokastro who take the city bus to travel to the city centre, while as reported by the minors themselves, these attacks, led by a group of local teenagers, often escalate from verbal to physical violence.
The complainant also stated that bus drivers contribute to the discriminatory treatment, with some allegedly removing refugees from public transport without justification or failing to intervene when verbal attacks occur on their vehicle.
The alterthess.gr report describes a specific incident on 10 September, during a sports meeting between minors living in a central Thessaloniki structure and minors living in Oreokastro. After boarding bus No. 56 from the “Mikis Theodorakis” stop on Lagkada Street (a route operated by KTEL Thessalonikis), “the driver stood up, demanded tickets only from the refugee minors, claimed he had been threatened both at that moment and in the past, immobilised the bus, and asked them to get off. According to available information, he also called the police. The discriminatory treatment of the minors is evident. Ironically, all unaccompanied minors always carry tickets and transport cards provided by the structures hosting them.”
The incident does not appear to be isolated. On the night of 12 September, a large group attacked four unaccompanied minors during a Pontic festival at a sports field in the Oreokastro area.
“One had his nose broken, another had a glass bottle smashed on his head, and a third was lightly injured. After the police were called, the two injured minors were taken to hospital and underwent examination,” the report states.
The complaint raises serious concerns about violations of fundamental constitutional provisions and Greece’s international obligations regarding the rights of refugees.
More specifically, Article 5 of the Greek Constitution states that,
From the perspective of international law, Article 12 of the 1951 Refugee Convention (Geneva Convention) – which recognises the right to asylum and guarantees a range of rights for refugees in their country of residence – provides that :
Under the rule of law, public authorities must respect and safeguard the rights of refugees during their stay in the host country.
However, the above complaint raises concerns about violations of fundamental constitutional provisions and Greece’s international obligations regarding the rights of refugees, as guaranteed by the Constitution and International Refugee Law.
These allegations should therefore be investigated by the competent state and judicial authorities.
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