Athens--Greece begins one of its most publicised trials in decades on Monday, with dozens of people linked to the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn party facing charges including murder and participation in a criminal organisation.
The trial, expected to last for months, will likely decide the future of parliament's third-largest party, an openly xenophobic and anti-Semitic formation that used to be on the fringes of national politics but whose popularity soared over the past few years as the country sank into economic hardship.
Set inside a high security prison in Athens, the trial will see party chief Nikos Michaloliakos and 68 others, including lawmakers and police officers, face a panel of three judges.
Most face charges of membership of a criminal organisation, a serious offence in Greece, while others are accused of murder, conspiracy to murder, possession of weapons and racist violence, and face sentences of up to 20 years if convicted.
After a 15-month investigation, state prosecutors will try to prove that the aggressive anti-immigrant group operated as a criminal organisation under a military-style leadership that allegedly encouraged the beating -- and possibly the killing -- of migrants and political opponents.
Under the command of party founder Michaloliakos, a 57-year-old disgraced former officer cadet, Golden Dawn has already been linked by investigating magistrates to at least two murders.
Golden Dawn rejects the accusations as politically motivated.
AFP
