Athens Mayor Haris Doukas on Sunday rejected criticism from Israel’s ambassador to Greece, who accused municipal authorities of failing to act over antisemitic graffiti in the city, and instead accused Israel of committing “genocide” in Gaza.
In a post on social media platform X, Doukas dismissed Ambassador Noam Katz’s comments, saying Athens “needs no lessons in democracy from those who kill civilians and children waiting in line for food aid.”
“Athens, the capital of a democratic country, respects its visitors and upholds the right to free expression,” he added.
Doukas said it was “appalling” for Katz to focus on graffiti while, in his words, an “unprecedented genocide” was unfolding in Gaza. He added that municipal crews were already removing the graffiti cited in the criticism.
The mayor also noted that the number of Golden Visas issued to Israeli citizens had risen by more than 90% over the past year.
Katz made the remarks in an interview published in the Sunday edition of Kathimerini, saying that the presence of antisemitic graffiti made Israeli tourists feel uncomfortable and accusing city authorities of failing to respond.