Israeli man injured in reported clash with three Palestinian men in Athens

Greek media says Israeli man and woman clashed with Palestinians carrying plastic sticks and flagpoles; all five involved were taken to police station

By ToI Staff 14 September 2025, 11:20 am

Edit

FILE: A protester waves a Palestinian flag during a demonstration against the war in the Gaza Strip outside Greece's Parliament in central Athens, Thursday, July 24, 2025. (AP/Petros Giannakouris)

An Israeli man was injured during what was described by Greek media as a “clash” with a group of Palestinian men in Athens on Saturday.

Greek media reported that the incident took place Saturday afternoon in Syntagma Square, near the Monument to the Unknown Soldier, in the center of the city.

According to CNN Greece, the incident involved two Israelis — a 30-year-old woman and a 29-year-old man — and three Palestinian men aged 27, 26 and 25. The report did not detail what led to the incident or who initiated the confrontation.

The report said that six plastic poles, two of them bearing flags, were confiscated from the Palestinian men.

The Israeli man was the only person reported to have been injured.

The report said that all five of those involved were taken to a police station, although it is unclear if any arrests were made.

Anti-Israel activists protest against the war in Gaza as the Crown Iris, an Israeli cruise ship, docks in Rhodes, Greece, on July 28, 2025. (Screenshot: X, used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)

There has been a spate of anti-Israel incidents in Greece, which is one of the most popular destinations for Israeli tourists during summer months.

Israeli cruise ships have been met with crowds of protesters, who in one case prevented a ship from docking in an incident that the Greek government condemned. Multiple Israelis have said they were attacked after speaking Hebrew in public places.

Last month, activists in the country staged a mass “Day of Action,” organized by a coalition of Greek pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel groups that called for protests “on islands and tourist destinations.”

One of the protests of the anti-Israel, pro-Palestinian ‘Day of Action’ in Greece on Sunday, August 10, 2025. (Screenshot)

Tens of thousands protested in dozens of locations against Israel and Israeli tourists in the country, but there were no reports of altercations between protesters and Israelis.

As part of the August “Day of Action,” one of the organizing groups, March to Gaza, called for Greece to adopt an arms embargo against Israel and to end all military cooperation between the countries. It also called on Greece not to allow entry to the hundreds of thousands of Israelis who, it claims, have participated in the war, nor to West Bank settlers.