Farmers escalate protests with 48h blocks, “cutting Greece in two” on Jan 8-9

Farmers and livestock breeders in Greece decided on Sunday to escalate their protests and launch 48-hour roadblocks that will “cut the country  in two” on upcoming Thursday and Friday, January 7-8, 2026.

These 48-h roadblocks after the Epiphany Day is the first phase of the escalation of their protests that started on November 30.

Representatives from over 50 farmers’ blocks gathered in Nea Malgara, northern Greece, on Sunday and took an unanimous decision: to escalate their protests.

With tractors, agricultural machinery and vehicles, the farmers will reportedly close:

• the Bralos junction
• Tempi
• Thessaloniki-Athens national road
• Egnatia Odos
• Ionian Odos
• Siatista, western Macedonia
• Rio-Antirio tolls
• Nisteni by Tripolis in Peloponnese
• Nea Malgara near thessaloniki

At the same time, the blockades will continue at the customs and transit stations of Evzoni, Niki, Promachona, Exochi, Ormeni and Kipi, as well as on side roads in many areas of the country.

“There will be a general escalation on Thursday and Friday and the government has the opportunity to provide solutions so that we can enter into a real dialogue,” the spokesman for the E65 blockade, Kostas Tzellas, told media.

“If they want, they can invite us to a sincere, substantive dialogue tomorrow, with solutions so that we can go home and end this 48-hour blockade once and for all. As a first step. The struggle does not stop,” he added.

“We want written guarantees not just small talk,” others said to justify the escalation.

They criticized the government accusing it of dealing with them with “threats, fines, authoritarian behavior and undermining” of their efforts.

Speaking to state broadcaster ERT, farmer Rizos Maroudas stressed “we are not going to retreat empty-handed from the blockades.”

He emphasized that “we are now on the 36th day of mobilizations” and stated that “no other opinion was expressed at the assembly meeting” stressing that it is “a fight for survival” for the Greek primary sector.

“We are not talking about mobilization, we are talking about rebellion,” Maroudas stressed.

After the 48-hour blockades the protesters will decided again on the future of their mobilizations and even to launch protests with their tractors in Greek capital Athens.