{"id":3008,"date":"2026-10-20T15:03:44","date_gmt":"2026-10-20T10:03:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/?p=3008"},"modified":"2026-10-20T15:03:44","modified_gmt":"2026-10-20T10:03:44","slug":"israeli-investment-fuels-tensions-in-pro-palestinian-athens-neighbourhood","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/?p=3008","title":{"rendered":"Israeli investment fuels tensions in pro-Palestinian Athens neighbourhood"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Israeli property investment and the spread of short-term tourist rentals are fuelling tensions in Exarchia, a central Athens neighbourhood known for its left-wing politics and strong solidarity with Palestinians, as residents say rising rents and property speculation are driving local families out.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Tonia Katerini, a 69-year-old architect who has lived in Exarchia since 1986, has spent months mapping foreign property purchases with a group of neighbours using public records.<\/p>\n

Their map shows a growing concentration of acquisitions across the neighbourhood.<\/p>\n

The group estimates that Israeli investors account for more than half of the area\u2019s newly established company-run hotels and rental properties, according to a report by Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n

Their claims have added to tensions in a neighbourhood where Palestinian flags hang from balconies, and pro-Palestinian slogans cover walls.<\/p>\n

On Katerini\u2019s street, Israeli investors have bought two buildings, she said, including the flat below her own.<\/p>\n

The sound of tourists dragging suitcases along the cobbled streets has become part of daily life.<\/p>\n

Nearby, a residential building bears the slogans \u201cAirbnbs leave us homeless\u201d and \u201cZionists not welcome\u201d.<\/p>\n

Such buildings are increasingly recognisable by entry panels displaying numbers instead of residents\u2019 names and keypads that allow short-term guests to collect their keys.<\/p>\n

The friction reflects the intersection of two issues for residents: the displacement of local communities by tourist accommodation and opposition to Israel amid the Gaza war and wider conflict involving Palestinians.<\/p>\n

Chrysoulla Papageorgiou, a 46-year-old schoolteacher who has lived in Exarchia for 24 years, said the neighbourhood had once been defined by solidarity.<\/p>\n

The transformation accelerated after the COVID-19 pandemic, when companies began buying entire buildings rather than renting out individual rooms.<\/p>\n

Katerini said Israeli buyers viewed Greece as a safer place to invest than Israel itself and pointed to what she described as the Greek government\u2019s close relationship with Israel. In August, Athens signed a $3.5 billion missile deal with Israel.<\/p>\n

Real estate agents say investment in Exarchia is driven primarily by commercial considerations.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Israeli property investment and the spread of short-term tourist rentals are fuelling tensions in Exarchia, a central Athens neighbourhood known for its left-wing politics and strong solidarity with Palestinians, as residents say rising rents and property speculation are driving local families out. Tonia Katerini, a 69-year-old architect who has lived in Exarchia since 1986, has spent months mapping foreign property purchases with a group of neighbours using public records. Their map shows a growing concentration of acquisitions across the neighbourhood. The group estimates that Israeli investors account for more than…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3008","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-english"],"gutentor_comment":0,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3008","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3008"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3008\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3008"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3008"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3008"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}