ATHENS, Greece (February 17, 2026) — Greece’s Culture Ministry announced on Monday that it will pursue the acquisition of a previously unknown series of photographs depicting the final moments of 200 Greek political prisoners executed by Nazi forces during World War II.
The images surfaced on eBay over the weekend, listed for auction by a Belgian collector specializing in German military memorabilia. They appear to show events from May 1, 1944, at the Kaisariani shooting range in Athens’ suburb, where communist resistance fighters and other prisoners were lined up and shot by a German firing squad. Until now, no photographic or filmed evidence of this specific atrocity had been publicly known, though the mass execution itself has long been documented as one of the most infamous crimes of the German occupation of Greece.
The Culture Ministry stated it is “very possible” the photographs are authentic. A ministry committee is scheduled to meet on Wednesday to assess whether the images qualify as part of Greece’s national cultural heritage. If deemed authentic and of legitimate origin, the ministry plans to proceed with acquisition through appropriate legal channels.
Experts from the ministry have already contacted the seller and plan to travel to Ghent, Belgium, to inspect the photographs in person and verify their authenticity and provenance. The ministry acknowledged potential legal complexities in claiming the items.
The executions were carried out in retaliation for a partisan ambush that killed a German major general days earlier. The victims, primarily communist political prisoners, faced their deaths with defiance—a stance that has made the event a powerful symbol of resistance in Greek collective memory.
The photos’ emergence sparked strong public reaction. Shortly after they appeared online, vandals damaged a memorial at the Kaisariani site, smashing plaques bearing the victims’ names. The municipality condemned the act, stating, “Historical memory will not be erased, no matter how much it bothers some people,” and vowed to restore the monument. Local officials described the images as evoking deep emotion over the “heroic, valiant stance” of those executed.
In a related development, the Belgian seller reportedly suspended or removed the eBay listings on Monday, citing the sensitive nature of the material and shock over the vandalism.
The incident underscores ongoing sensitivities in Greece surrounding World War II occupation atrocities, the subsequent civil war (1946–1949), and the preservation of historical evidence tied to national trauma.