More than 3,500 police officers will deploy across Thessaloniki on Saturday to secure the inauguration of the city's 90th International Fair, as trade unions, farmers and activist groups prepare to hold major demonstrations.
The Greek prime minister is expected to use his traditional keynote speech at the exhibition to announce an economic package worth between 4.1 billion and 4.2 billion euros. The measures are aimed at increasing real incomes ahead of the general election scheduled for 2027.
The Thessaloniki International Fair is an annual commercial exhibition held in September in Greece's second-largest city. The inauguration weekend is traditionally the venue where the government outlines its economic policy and domestic agenda for the coming year, drawing tens of thousands of visitors and triggering annual protests by organized labor.
Police deployment and drones
The Hellenic Police has drawn up an operational plan focused on preventing clashes and ensuring the safe movement of the public and exhibition visitors. The strategy does not differ significantly from the security operations mounted in previous years.
The deployment will include about 60 squads of riot police and other equivalent public order units. The local police force will receive significant reinforcements from police directorates in neighboring prefectures to manage the scale of the operation.
The State Security division and other specialized police services will also have distinct roles in the plan, depending on their areas of responsibility. Two prosecutors will monitor the implementation of the security measures, with one stationed in the center of Thessaloniki and another at the Police Operations Center.
Police drones will fly over the city to transmit live aerial footage back to the Operations Center, which will operate at the Thessaloniki Police Headquarters. The live feed is intended to give commanders a continuous picture of how the mobilizations are developing on the ground.
Officers will carry out preventive checks on individuals before the rallies begin as part of a deterrent policy. A police water cannon will also be kept on standby to be deployed if commanders deem it necessary.
Heavy police units will line the central avenues of Thessaloniki along the routes the scheduled demonstrations will take. Riot vans and metal barricades will be placed around the Ioannis Vellidis Congress Centre, the large venue on the fairgrounds where the prime minister will speak, to stop protesters from moving toward the site.
Weekend rallies and marches
The protests began on Friday with a series of gatherings that will peak on Saturday, the day of the prime minister's speech and the official opening of the fair.
Workers in public hospitals and health care structures opened the weekend of demonstrations on Friday with a gathering at the Ippokrateio Hospital, followed by a march through the central streets of the city. Crews from the national ambulance service scheduled a separate gathering for Friday morning outside the Ministry of Macedonia and Thrace, the building that serves as the government's headquarters in northern Greece.
On Friday evening, federations representing the security forces plan to meet at the White Tower, the 15th-century waterfront monument that serves as the symbol of the city. Half an hour later, the union of Thessaloniki hospital doctors scheduled a rally at the gate of the Papanikolaou Hospital.
Main demonstrations on Saturday
The main segment of the protests will take place on Saturday. In the morning, unions representing public sector engineers and university-educated technical staff are scheduled to gather at the Ministry of Macedonia and Thrace.
At 17:00, farmers representing the nationwide committee of agricultural blockades will hold a rally at the White Tower.
At 17:30, the communist-affiliated PAME union will meet at the YMCA square, known locally as Platia HANTH. They will be joined at the same location by pensioners' organizations and the association representing relatives of the victims of the 2023 Tempi train disaster, a railway crash in central Greece that killed 57 people.
At 18:00, Greece's largest umbrella unions for the private and public sectors, GSEE and ADEDY, will hold their gathering at the Venizelos Statue, alongside the Thessaloniki Labour Centre. At the same time, extra-parliamentary left-wing groups and anarchists have called for a gathering at the Kamara, the 4th-century Roman Arch of Galerius.
The various gatherings are expected to evolve into marches through the central streets of Thessaloniki, a development that will cause significant disruption to traffic.
Road closures and alternative routes
The Thessaloniki Traffic Police Directorate has announced a series of measures for the city center, and bans on the stopping and parking of vehicles are already in effect.
The historic center will close to all vehicles from 15:00 on Saturday. The closures will be implemented gradually and will depend on how the demonstrations develop.
Traffic will be banned on major road axes and avenues, including Stratou Avenue and the Nikis waterfront avenue. The restrictions will also close 3rd Septemvriou, Vassilissis Olgas, Vassileos Georgiou, Kountourioti, Konstantinou Karamanli, Egnatia, Ethnikis Aminis, Tsimiski, Agiou Dimitriou, Agias Sofias, Pavlou Mela, Eleftheriou Venizelou and Manoli Andronikou streets.
Until the events conclude, police will channel traffic gradually through alternative routes. Drivers travelling from east to west will be directed via Katsimidi Street, the city's Ring Road, and Olympiados Street, as well as Agiou Dimitriou Street if conditions allow.
Vehicles moving from west to east will be directed via 26th Oktovriou Street, Lagkada Street and the Ring Road, and also via Agiou Dimitriou Street where conditions permit.
The entire force of the Traffic Police Directorate will be deployed on the streets, and officers will be stationed to regulate traffic at key intersections.
Metro station shutdowns
The security measures will also bring significant changes to the operation of the Thessaloniki Metro on Saturday.
From 15:00, the operating company will temporarily suspend service at eight stations because of the protests. The affected stops are New Railway Station, Dimokratias, Venizelou, Agias Sofias, Sintrivani, Panepistimio, Papafi and Efklidis.
The remaining stations on the network will operate according to the instructions of the operating agency. The reopening of the closed stations will depend on how the protests develop and the overall situation in the city center.
