Tempe two-year anniversary — Mass protests sweep across Greece and abroad

Rallies were scheduled today in 365 cities across Greece and abroad to mark the two-year anniversary of the Tempe railway tragedy, which claimed the lives of 57 people. All the major labour union federations in Greece launched a statewide strike, with healthcare workers, educators, seafarers, public transportation, and cultural sector workers joining in.

18:10 Belgrade

Students and citizens in Belgrade gathered today outside the Greek embassy to honour the 57 victims of the Tempe train disaster and express solidarity with the Greek people. The rally was organised by students of the University of Belgrade, with Greek students studying in Serbia joining at 11:00 a.m. A banner reading “In Novi Sad and Tempe, the state and capital kill” was displayed, drawing a parallel between the Tempe disaster and recent protests in Serbia.

Serbian students marched from the Faculty of Philosophy to the Greek embassy, carrying a large banner reading: “Your struggle is also our struggle!”, which they left at the embassy entrance.

17:40 Syntagma

Protesters are returning in front of the Parliament chanting anti-government slogans. Watch the live feed from Reuters below:

17:00

Videos emerged showing emergency responders and citizens pushing back riot police at the entrance of Ermou Street in Athens, shouting, “There are injured people!” as tear gas filled the air. Protesters were trapped in surrounding streets, with reports alleging that riot police fired tear gas into arcades and residential buildings crowded with people.

16:00 Athens

Photojournalist Orestis Panagiotou was injured by a flashbang grenade to the head, requiring stitches and leaving him with hearing loss. He was discharged from the hospital with reduced hearing.

This follows the January 26 protest, where photojournalist Marios Lolos was also struck by a flashbang grenade, suffering ear damage and bruising. Lolos and the Union of Greek Photojournalists had then condemned the police’s actions, calling the act “murderous,” and stating:

“Flashbang grenades should not be thrown into the air.”

15:00 Thessaloniki

What some called the “greatest demonstration the city has ever seen” has ended.

Hundreds of thousands filled the streets from early morning, gathering at the Venizelos statue.

Demonstrators packed Aristotelous Square, Egnatia, and surrounding streets before marching towards the New Railway Station, where some staged a sit-in protest, while others moved towards Kamara, where minor clashes erupted.

“We lost eleven colleagues—railway workers from across the sector. Fifty-seven families shattered, loved ones vanished. And we, the workers, were left fewer,”

stated Nikos Tsaklidis, a Hellenic Train employee and relative of a victim.

 

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Syntagma Square, Athens

A student was the first to speak, reading the names of the people that died in the railway crash. As each victim’s name was called, the crowd chanted ‘present’ in unison.

 

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She then denounced the privatisation of public services, pointing out that “those who have governed this country are responsible for this crime because they sold the railway to private entities.”

“Hellenic Train prioritised its profits over our lives—and still does—while systematically dismantling and degrading the railway, all in line with EU directives.”

She also condemned the government’s attempts to cover up the case and called for the railway to be nationalised, declaring to Parliament, “To us, your guilt is undeniable.”

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Another student argued:

“The true culprit is the reckless ‘trial and error, no matter the cost’ mindset of this government and the ones before it—those who sold off the railways in the name of profit. Privatisation itself is to blame, because just as they sold off the trains, they are now selling off healthcare, water, and every aspect of our lives.”

He warned that:

“The next Tempe disaster is waiting to happen—in understaffed schools, in classrooms where ceilings are collapsing, in public transport that remains a death trap, and in universities that are not only underfunded but also being gradually privatised.”

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Train drivers took the stage to highlight the shortages in the railway sector, the cover-up, and the evidence tampering in the Tempe case.

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Alongside the victims’ relatives, a powerful statement was also made by Kyriaki Griva, the mother of a femicide victim.

“I address the murderers of our children. You insulted and treated our dead with disdain. Their remains lie in secret places. You committed the highest sacrilege, and Nemesis will deliver your due retribution,” declared Maria Karystiannou, as the crowd below chanted “murderers, murderers.”

28/02 11:00

The anarchist collective Rouvikonas staged an intervention on the roof of Hellenic Train’s headquarters in Athens, unfurling a banner reading “Murderers” 25 members of the collective were arrested.

28/02 10:00

Maria Karystiannou, president of the Association of Tempe victims’ families, who lost her daughter in the tragedy, arrived early in the morning at Syntagma Square in Athens, where the crowd had already filled central Athens up to Omonia Square, with more people continually arriving.

Hundreds of thousands of protesters stormed in response to calls for accountability and an end to the cover-up.

 

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28/02 9:00

In a provocative post marking the second anniversary of the Tempe tragedy, PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis referred to “human errors” and “chronic failings of the state” but failed to take any responsibility for his government’s role. Despite attempting to appear unifying by speaking to both the protesters and those quietly commemorating the victims, he once again targeted the opposition, accusing them of “political exploitation of human suffering.”

27/02 20:00

The government, through its spokesperson Pavlos Marinakis, attempted to divert attention from the findings of EODASAAM, arguing that “the report refutes claims of a cover-up.” Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis also made a provocative statement in his post for the two-year anniversary of the Tempe tragedy, speaking of “human errors and the state’s chronic inadequacies” without referring to the responsibilities of his government. Although he tried to appear unifying, speaking to both the protesting citizens and those who ‘quietly honour the memory of the Tempe victims,’ he once again launched an attack on the opposition, accusing them of ‘politically exploiting human suffering.’

27/02 16:00

In a symbolic act of protest, prisoners in multiple Greek correctional facilities have refused the midday lockdown, expressing solidarity with the families of the Tempe victims and those demonstrating on the two-year anniversary of the disaster. In a joint statement, they condemned judicial and political cover-ups, declaring: “No to the cover-up – Justice for the 57 dead of Tempe.”

27/02 13:00

The protests are taking place one day after the publication of the report by the Hellenic Aviation and Railway Safety Investigation Agency (EODASAAM), which points to the abandonment of the railway, the absence of safety systems, understaffing, underfunding, and the possible presence of unknown fuel that caused the fire, resulting in the deaths of at least 5 to 7 of the 57 victims. The report also mentioned that valuable evidence was lost because of the backfilling of the accident site.

Read the timeline of the Tempe case here

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