Turkish football team denied entry to Greece after refusing tests

Greek authorities refused entry into the country to Turkish football team Galatasaray on Monday after its members refused to get a COVID-19 rapid test.

Galatasaray landed in Athens on a private flight for a friendly game with Olympiacos. The team refused to get a rapid test as the country’s health protocol suggests, the authorities said they could not enter the country and they therefore returned to Turkey.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu described Greece’s decision as “unacceptable.” In a separate statement, Turkey’s foreign ministry said: “The fact that Greece welcomed one of the top teams in the country with such behaviour shows that there is no tolerance towards our country even in the field of sports.”

Greek Deputy Minister of Civil Protection Nikos Hardalias replied that when it comes to public health issues no exceptions could be made. “In Greece, an EU member state, human rights are fully respected for the people of the country, but also for its visitors,” he added. (Sarantis Michalopoulos | EURACTIV.com)

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