Greek police evict over 260 migrants from Athens squats

ATHENS: Police in Athens removed over 260 migrants, including dozens of children, from two squats in the city centre as part of a law-and-order drive by the new conservative government.

Overall 269 people, including nearly 100 minors, were removed and taken to the police headquarters for identification, the police said in a statement. State TV ERT showed the migrants boarding buses, some of them clutching plastic bags with their belongings. The two abandoned buildings had been occupied since 2016, the police said. The crackdown has been opposed by anti-establishment and rights groups who say the operations unfairly target migrant families, who would otherwise be homeless, and the solidarity groups that support them. Thousands of anti-establishment protesters marched in Athens on Saturday in a demonstration against the squat evacuations. New Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, elected in July, has vowed to combat “lawlessness”. The new Athens Mayor Kostas Bakoyannis — who is the prime minister´s nephew — was similarly elected on a public safety ticket in June. Bakoyannis argues that order must be restored before sidelined landmarks such as the National Archaeological Museum and the Athens Polytechnic — in the middle of drug-trading areas — can become tourist draws.