Eight people arrested for incidents during the arrival of the “Crown Iris” in Rhodes received a deadline of August 1, 2025 to stand trial. According to dimokratiki.gr, the trial of the eight defendants for incidents that occurred outside Rhodes tourist port on Sunday, July 28, 2025, has been postponed as the Rhodes Summary Court granted a deadline for August 1, 2025 for the case hearing, following a relevant request from defense lawyers.
The arrested individuals were brought before the Public Prosecutor accompanied by police officers, following their arrest during a mobilization that took place upon the arrival of the Crown Iris cruise ship, flying the Maltese flag but with Israeli interests. The protest, as evident from the case file, was organized with the central demand of “resistance to the tourist legitimization of crimes against the Palestinian people.” It should be noted that supporters gathered at the courthouse early Tuesday morning to support the defendants.
Rhodes: The timeline of arrests – “Israeli murderers, killers”
According to Greek Police, at 15:15 on July 28, a group of approximately 40-50 people gathered outside the main gate of the tourist port, aiming to prevent the disembarkation of cruise ship passengers. Despite appeals from police forces to leave, the demonstrators remained in the area, shouting slogans such as “Israeli murderers” and “killers.” During the attempt to disperse the gathered crowd, it was recorded that some of them tried to break through the police cordon, while allegedly exercising physical violence against police officers, resulting in on-site arrests.
The case file formed includes, per case, the following offenses:
Article 167 of the Penal Code – Violence against officials and judicial persons
Article 169 of the Penal Code – Disobedience
Law 4285/2014 (Anti-racist) – Incitement to violence or hatred
The defendants
Eight people were arrested, including three men aged 26, 37 and 43 of Greek origin, a 62-year-old woman of Italian nationality, a 51-year-old woman of Greek origin, a 43-year-old man of Franco-Belgian nationality, a 27-year-old Greek man and Ms. Evangelia Panai, the only one whose details are made public due to her status as a public figure.
Ms. Panai is represented by MP and lawyer Zoe Konstantopoulou, who has declared her intention to personally attend the trial. Ms. Panai, according to the police report, refused to leave the protest site and allegedly resisted during her arrest.
Request for formal trial
Upon their arrival at the Summary Court, the defendants’ lawyers Dimos Moutafis and Kostas Diakonis submitted a request to the Public Prosecutor not to follow the summary procedure, but for the case to be referred to a regular trial, in order to ensure, as they argued, procedural preparation, defense rights and adequate examination of evidence. The Prosecutor rejected the request and referred the case for trial to the Summary Court, where ultimately the defendants requested and received a three-day deadline.
Defendants deny the alleged charges
According to the independent claims submitted to the court by the lawyers, the defendants deny all the alleged charges. Specifically, they state:
-That the phraseology attributed to them (“Israeli murderers” etc.) constitutes political criticism against the state of Israel and not racist incitement to violence, within the meaning of Law 4285/2014.
-That they did not engage in acts of disobedience or resistance and that in many cases they were arrested at points far from the tension area, while they fully cooperated with the authorities.
-That there are video documents confirming the non-commission of acts of violence on their part and the arbitrary use of police violence in at least one case.
-That movement within the Medieval City does not fall under any prohibition and the existence of “predetermined departure points” was not clear, so the offense of disobedience is not substantiated.
The police base the prosecution on a series of testimonies, as well as video material from port cameras and patrol car recordings.
Zoe Konstantopoulou’s involvement
The case has already taken on a public character due to the involvement of Zoe Konstantopoulou and Evangelia Panai. Their participation in the proceedings and public statements are expected to give a political dimension to a case rooted in social protest with strong international symbolism.
Given the number of defendants, the gravity of the charges and the political tension, the proceedings promise to be long and complex, with possible approaches both at the criminal and constitutional level, particularly regarding the interpretation of freedom of expression and the legality of police operations. The development of the case is awaited with particular interest.
