The Jewish Community of Thessaloniki has prevailed in a legal battle that spanned over three decades, with the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruling that the Greek state had wrongly claimed ownership of land in the center of the northern port city.
The ruling effectively overturns a 2019 decision by Greece’s Court of Cassation (Supreme Court).
The case has a complex historical background. In 1917, a devastating fire destroyed much of Thessaloniki. In December 1920, a large area in the city center was expropriated to support Jewish residents who had lost their properties in the fire.
Among the affected parcels was a 7,400-square-meter plot that became the subject of a legal dispute between an Italian citizen of Jewish origin, identified as I.S.M., and a neighboring landowner. The matter was temporarily resolved through the mediation of the Jewish Community of Thessaloniki, which deposited the compensation from the expropriation into the Deposits and Loans Fund, allowing the rightful owner to claim it once determined.
While the dispute remained unresolved, World War II broke out. In 1940, the Greek government passed laws allowing the seizure of “enemy property,” which was placed under state sequestration. Following the war – during which I.S.M. was executed by the Nazis – the Greek government decided in 1950 to permanently confiscate German and Bulgarian assets in Greece, granting a three-month window for third parties to assert their claims.
In 1952, I.S.M.’s heirs sought compensation for the expropriated land. The courts determined the amount in 1957, and in 1967, the Jewish Community of Thessaloniki paid compensation to three of the six heirs.
Meanwhile, in 1955, Greece extended the seizure law to include Italian assets. In the late 1970s, although the Jewish community had been using the land, the Greek state began challenging its ownership. In response, the community filed a declaratory lawsuit in 1981, seeking legal recognition of its rights – marking the start of a lengthy legal fight.
Although the community won all prior rulings – including a 2018 decision by the Court of Cassation affirming its ownership – the state appealed once more. In 2019, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the state, asserting that the community should have filed a property claim within the three-month deadline established by the 1950 law.
The Jewish Community of Thessaloniki then turned to the ECHR, which ruled in its favor on Tuesday. The court ordered the Greek state to pay €5,000 in non-pecuniary damages and €40,000 in legal costs.
David Saltiel, president of the Jewish Community of Thessaloniki, told Kathimerini: “Eighty years have passed since the end of the war, and we are still discussing land that should have been returned to the Jewish Community of Thessaloniki – land that the Greek state mistakenly took.”
He added, “Our community, a public-law entity, appealed to the ECHR to seek justice after the Supreme Court’s decision. But there are other unresolved cases involving Jewish properties that the Greek state must also return. These issues should have been settled long ago.”
