Seven months after the publication of the revealing, cross-border investigation by MIIR and its partners, which was published in “Efimerida ton Syntakton” (EfSyn) newspaper under the title “The Mediterranean Wings of the Underworld” (August 2, 2025), we were served with a lawsuit from the Greek airline AIR MEDITERRANEAN. The lawsuit against our team and EfSyn -requesting a total amount of one hundred thousand (100,000) euros- does not aim to remedy any “damage”, but to instill fear. A lawsuit carrying a message for anyone who insists on investigating shady activities: “Stay away.” It is a classic SLAPP, a case of strategic censorship that attempts to turn journalism into a legal risk and investigations into a financial threat.
This isn’t the first time. And unfortunately, it’s not an isolated incident for investigative journalism teams in Greece. In an environment where press freedom is systematically challenged and the rule of law is showing alarming cracks, such lawsuits have a cumulative effect: not only against the targeted journalists and media outlets, but against the public itself, which has a right to be informed. Our reporting was not the product of speculation or insinuation, but the result of months of investigation, international collaboration, and meticulous documentation. The principles of journalistic ethics were upheld – even when the plaintiffs chose not to respond to our questions. We absolutely stand behind every word.
We are not going to back down. Not because we can “afford” it – we are, after all, a small team with very limited resources – but because this is our job. To investigate, to ask questions, to cross-check, to expose – even when this becomes annoying. We call on our readers, our colleagues, and journalists’ unions in Greece and abroad to stand with us in the legal battle ahead, defending the right to free and independent information.
You can read the first part of our investigation here: https://miir.gr/en/the-mediterranean-wings-of-the-underworld/
And the follow-up on the wanted Golden Visa investors in Greece, here: https://miir.gr/katazitoumenoi-chrysoi-ependytes-stin-ellada/