Greek courtroom upholds convictions of leaders of neo-Nazi social gathering

A Greek appeals court Wednesday upheld the 2020 convictions of leaders and associates of the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn party.

A Greek court in 2020 found the party guilty of running a criminal organization under the disguise of a political party in a major win for democracy in the country.

In 2020, the party’s leader, Nikos Michaloliakos, a Holocaust denier, and other top members were found guilty of running and participating in a criminal organization. 

The decision came after a five-year trial.

Golden Dawn convictions upheld by judges

In a unanimous decision, a panel of five judges at the Criminal Appeal Court in Athens confirmed the 2020 convictions of 42 Golden Dawn members and associates who had appealed their sentences.

They include party leader Nikos Michaloliakos, 68, who was sentenced to 13 years in prison but was released on parole last year on health grounds.

Greece’s conservative Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis welcomed the decision.

“This concerns a traumatic chapter in our parliamentary life, one that I hope and wish we can now leave firmly behind us,” he said, speaking in parliament.

What you need to know about Golden Dawn

Golden Dawn was founded as a neo-Nazi party in the 1980s.

The party rose to prominence during the country’s financial crisis, with the party having held seats in parliament between 2012 and 2019.

Golden Dawn built a national profile based on an anti-austerity and anti-immigrant agenda.

The party became Greece’s third-most popular party at the peak of its financial crisis.

But a criminal investigation into the party began after the murder of a left-wing rapper, Pavlos Fyssas, in 2013.

The party member who fatally stabbed Fyssas was found guilty of murder in 2020. The appeals court on Wednesday also upheld that decision. 

Edited by: Dmytro Hubenko