Publication date: 24 September 2026
Claim
A video of a large demonstration in Thessaloniki is being shared on social media with captions claiming that Greece is now paralysed by mass protests and that airports, ports, factories and trains have stopped.
Verdict
False. The video does show a large demonstration in Greece, but it was recorded on 28 February 2025 during a nationwide strike on the second anniversary of the Tempi rail disaster. It does not prove that the country was paralysed by comparable protests in September 2026.
In brief
• Full Fact traced the circulating footage to a post published on 28 February 2025.
• Reuters and BBC reported a 24-hour general strike and mass demonstrations in Athens, Thessaloniki and other cities that day.
• Separate cost-of-living protests did take place in Thessaloniki on 5 September 2026, but their existence does not make the older footage current.
• A real event was presented with the wrong date and a broader description of what was happening.
Why this matters
Old footage can be authentic and still mislead. Viewers see a real crowd and a real event, which can make a false caption more persuasive than a wholly fabricated image. Changing the date and context distorts the apparent scale of current events, transport disruption and conditions in another country.
Checking the date is particularly important for videos of protests, strikes, fires and emergencies. Such footage often returns when a new but smaller event takes place.
What we checked
We checked the wording documented by Full Fact, the origin of the footage and independent reporting about events in Greece on 28 February 2025. We also checked whether protests took place in Thessaloniki in early September 2026.
We did not assess the protesters' demands or the actions of the Greek authorities. This check concerns only the date of the video and the conclusion that it depicts nationwide paralysis in September 2026.
Evidence
Full Fact identified a publication of the same footage dated 28 February 2025. Mass demonstrations and a 24-hour general strike took place across Greece that day, marking the second anniversary of the Tempi disaster. Fifty-seven people died when a passenger train and freight train collided on 28 February 2023.
Reuters reported on 28 February 2025 that hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets, protests occurred in dozens of cities, and the strike halted many public services and private businesses. Reuters separately described a large crowd and clashes in Thessaloniki.
BBC also reported that day on Greece's largest protests in years, a general strike and large gatherings in Thessaloniki, Athens and other cities. These independent reports match the date established by Full Fact.
New cost-of-living demonstrations did take place in Thessaloniki in early September 2026. According to the Associated Press, more than 25,000 people gathered in the city on 5 September. That was a real event, but it does not change the origin of the circulating video. Footage of the larger 2025 demonstration cannot be presented as an image of the 2026 protests.
The claim that all of Greece is now paralysed would also require current evidence about transport, businesses and public services. An old video does not provide that evidence.
What remains unknown
We did not identify the original author of every repost or measure the video's total reach across platforms. We also do not claim that Greece saw no protests in September. The checked sources confirm demonstrations in Thessaloniki on 5 September, but they do not show that the circulating video was filmed there that day or that it proves a nationwide shutdown.
Conclusion
The video shows real mass protests, but not current ones. It dates from 28 February 2025 and the anniversary of the Tempi rail disaster. Captions claiming that these images prove Greece was paralysed in September 2026 change both the date and context. Verdict: false.
Sources
1. Full Fact, verification of the video's origin and the claim, September 2026: https://fullfact.org/world/old-video-protests-greece/
2. Reuters, mass protests and nationwide strike on 28 February 2025: https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/greece-standstill-ahead-mass-protest-anniversary-deadly-train-crash-2025-02-28/
3. BBC News, protests on the second anniversary of the Tempi disaster, 28 February 2025: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2gg8le1kpo
4. Associated Press, cost-of-living protests in Thessaloniki on 5 September 2026: https://apnews.com/article/greece-economy-mitsotakis-elections-cost-of-living-e22d724cc8472a38dfb136a597b9fd8a
Corrections and updates
If further reliable information about the footage's origin or distribution becomes available, this article will be updated. Material corrections will be recorded in this section.