The main leader of the Greek armed group 17 November, considered the deadliest urban guerrilla organization in the country's modern history, will return to prison after his recent release was overturned by Greece's highest court.
Aged 82, Alexandros Giotopoulos was arrested in 2002 when law enforcement dismantled the Marxist group November 17th. This clandestine organization had carried out a 27-year campaign of assassinations and attacks that left its mark on Greek political life.
Giotopoulos and several other members of the group were found guilty by a Greek court in 2003. Although he always denied the charges against him, an appeals court sentenced him in 2007 to 17 life sentences plus an additional 25 years in prison.
On May 21, he had left the high-security prison of Korydallos, near Athens, after a panel of judges accepted a request filed in 2025. According to Greek media, this request was based on reasons related to his state of health.
But this decision proved short-lived. The Greek Supreme Court this week upheld an appeal filed by a prosecutor seeking to overturn the release order, according to the Athens News Agency.
On Tuesday, Alexandros Giotopoulos appeared before a prosecutor and was expected to be returned to Korydallos prison later that day. This return to custody marks a new development in one of the most emblematic cases in the fight against terrorism in Greece.
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