History Amygdaleza PRDC was opened in April 2012 as Greece’s first purpose-built camp for detention of irregular migrants.[49] It was intended to implement Greece’s National Action plan on Asylum and Migration Management, specifically, to increase the return rate of irregular migrants and deter irregular arrivals longer term.[50] In reality, a significant number of detainees have been held without purpose since its opening, an issue which persists today.[51] The site was composed of 250 containers divided along three sections, surrounded by a wire fence, and is in a remote location in the Attica region, approximately a 40 minute drive North of Athens. The construction and operation costs of Amygdaleza were largely funded by European sources (75%), alongside NGOs and private donors.[52] Once in operation, Amygdaleza was Greece’s largest detention facility, with a capacity for 2,000,[53] and was established with the intention to ensure better quality facilities, however, this was immediately under criticism by CSOs and international human rights bodies.[54] Following a series of human rights abuses and four deaths by 2015,[55] including the death of a man who’s medical situation was left unattended for months, hunger strikes[56] and detainees setting fire to bedding, an aggressive police response leading to rooms being left without electricity for days and the election of the new left-wing government in 2015, Amygdaleza was slowly evacuated.[57] However, despite government claims that it would be closed in 100 days, the centre remains, at a reduced capacity. The inadequate conditions and persistence of human rights violations in Amygdaleza have been consistently reported since.[58] Amygdaleza also has a Special holding facility for unaccompanied minors, located nearby the PRDC. Although this report does not focus on detention of unaccompanied minors, a significant number of concerns have been raised by the CPT[59] and civil society actors,[60] particularly regarding the inadequate conditions,[61] psycho-social support facilities and services available. The CPT also reported that unaccompanied minors who caused problems in the Special holding facility for minors would be transferred to Tavros (Petrou Ralli) PRDC. In 2016, the facility was closed, however it was reopened, and throughout 2021 there was a total of 311 unaccompanied minors detained there.[62] CPT visits and Report Findings on Amygdaleza PRDC In 2015, the CPT carried out a visit to Greece to assess the implementation of the CPT’s previous recommendations, specifically those contained in the reports on the 2011 and 2013 visits. The 2015 report[63] raises concerns with regards to the use of detention for unaccompanied minors in Amygdaleza PRDC, as well as concerning allegations of assault by police officers on a group being transferred from Amygdaleza PRDC to Athens Airport in 2013. However, there was no specific visit to Amygdaleza PRDC. In 2018, the CPT made a subsequent visit to Greece and although not primarily focused on immigration detention, the delegation set out to investigate allegations of physical ill-treatment and conditions of holding sites in Greece. The report[64] concluded that Amygdaleza PRDC had acceptable conditions, adequate access to legal advice for issues related to detention and deportation, had access to doctors five days a week and two interpreters, and that detainees were able to use their phones with cameras and use WiFi. However, the delegation acknowledged the number of people who were being held in Amygdaleza PRDC under the so-called “IOM section”, and who had allegedly signed up for voluntary return from Greece, yet in interviews with members of the delegation, stated that they explicitly did not want to return home and had not given their consent.[65] A lack of information and truly informed consent was apparent and therefore raised in the recommendations by the CPT, calling for necessary steps to be taken to ensure safeguards are respected in practice. In addition, the report describes concerns over the inadequacy of outdoor spaces in Amygdaleza PRDC, as well as distinct lack of communal spaces or recreational activities. 16