Diavata Reception and Identification Centre (RIC) started operations in September 2022 on an existing site which had been used to accommodate registered asylum seekers since 2016 and was previously used as a military base (Anagnostopoulou). The current site operates both as a RIC and a reception facility for registered asylum seekers (Controlled Access Facility for the Temporary Accommodation of Asylum Seekers (CAFTA)). The facility is surrounded by industrial warehouses and farmland. Some infrastructure remains from the site’s previous use as a military base, for instance the watchtowers. Residents have free movement within the facility, and the accommodation area is not separated by any fence or barrier from the administration buildings.

The site on which the RIC and CAFTA operate has attracted attention for its poor conditions since first opening. UNHCR reported that in July 2018, Diavata was over overcrowded, hosting 1,497 people, 55% of whom were children. In the same year, Human Rights Watch reported that multiple families were accommodated in single rooms in extremely hot temperatures, often sleeping on blankets on the floor. Many others were accommodated in tents, including new mothers and pregnant women, some of whom had spent up to 20 days living in tents. The same report highlighted that security was a concern for some residents, particularly women who reported feeling unsafe using the bathroom facilities which lacked privacy and were difficult to access.

In early 2019, temperatures in Diavata fell below freezing and the facility was covered by snow. At the time, Greek media reported that the camp remained over capacity with 1,410 people hosted at the facility, approximately 400 of whom were still accommodated in tents. These conditions resulted in numerous protests from residents, but they failed to lead to improvements. Shortly after the protests, in April 2019, Diavata again attracted the attention of the media. Large numbers of people were drawn to the camp after false reports on social media that restrictions on travel into central Europe had been lifted, creating hope that the so-called Balkan route would reopen. The media reported on the Greek police’s use of tear gas on the hundreds of people who had set up an informal camp outside the Diavata facility. Despite protests and media attention, poor conditions in the facility persisted. In May 2019, Refugee Support Aegean (RSA) reported on a lack of access to medical care and overcrowding. Female residents described feelings of insecurity within the facility. At this time long queues for medical services within Diavata were reported.

In September 2022, the Greek government implemented significant changes to the asylum system on the mainland. Stateless persons and third-country nationals on the mainland, Rhodes or Crete, who were not already identified, had to undergo reception and identification procedures at one of two new screening facilities (RICs), located at Diavata and Malakasa, close to Thessaloniki and Athens respectively. Diavata and Malakasa began operating in September 2022 and were formally established as RICs in mid-November 2022 through a Presidential Decree.

The new Diavata RIC was established on the same site as the accommodation facility for asylum seekers. Third country nationals entering the RIC undergo a screening procedure consisting of a police interview, vulnerability assessment, medical check and registration of an asylum claim. Under Greek law, an applicant can be subject to a deprivation of liberty for a maximum of 25 days, while undergoing reception and identification procedures. This deprivation of liberty has been routinely practiced at Diavata since September 2022, which as highlighted by the Greek Ombudsperson was prior its formal establishment as a RIC, and therefore lacked a legal basis.

Entry to Diavata RIC is regulated through an online appointment booking form on the Migration Ministry’s website, launched in July 2022. Since the beginning, as reported by civil society organisations including RSA, the platform has been consistently plagued by technical problems and long delays. During 2023, many applicants were severely delayed or prevented from lodging an asylum application, which left them without legal protection and vulnerable to detention. In 2023, RSA reported on the immense barriers to lodging an asylum application in mainland Greece, findings corroborated in the same year by MIT and Refugee Legal Support (RLS) research which reported on the lack of access to legal support, information regarding procedures, long waiting times and violations relating to the deprivation of liberty.

Diavata RIC is a rural and isolated site. It is situated 2km from the village of Diavata, and 7km from Thessaloniki which is only accessible by public bus once an hour. Residents are accommodated in shared containers. Material conditions at the site have not improved since its designation as a RIC. MIT and RLS reported on the inadequate facilities at Diavata in 2023, including unhygienic living conditions, dirty containers and mattresses with mould. Containers were described as dusty and had clothes and food from previous occupants. Additionally, the provision of basic hygiene items was inadequate and access to health care was limited. During the 2023 heatwave in Greece, some residents reported that air conditioning in their containers was insufficient. The food at the facility is provided by a catering company and is distributed once a day as 3 pre-prepared meals. The food provided is generally reported to be acceptable in quantity, but lacking in variety and quality.