Thousands march in Greece against labor law changes, disrupt services nationwide

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Thousands of demonstrators marched through the streets of Athens Wednesday as part of a general strike that left ferries tied up in port and disrupted services across the country to protest changes to the country's labor laws.

Many of the protesters also waved Palestinian flags and chanted “free, free Palestine” to voice their opposition to the war in Gaza.

No taxis or trains in Athens were running for the duration of the 24-hour strike, as buses and the capital city's subway, tram and trolley services operated on a reduced schedule. The strike disrupted services across the country, including in schools, courts, public hospitals and municipalities.

Unions representing civil servants and private sector workers called the strike to protest labor law changes that allow greater flexibility in labor conditions, including overtime that could stretch occasional shifts to 13 hours. Under the new regulations, working hours that include overtime would be capped at 48 hours per week, with a maximum of 150 overtime hours allowed per year.

Unions argue the new rules leave workers vulnerable to labor abuses by employers.

“We say no to the 13-hour (shift). Exhaustion is not development, human tolerance has limits,” the private sector umbrella union, the General Confederation of Workers of Greece, said in a statement. The union called for a 37½-hour working week and the return of collective bargaining agreements.

A woman takes a snapshot at the Greek parliament as Greek police stand guard near a protest during a nationwide 24-hour strike in Athens, Greece, Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)

Protesters take part in a nationwide 24-hour strike in Athens, Greece, Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025, as labor unions demand higher wages and the withdrawal of a bill changing work hours. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

Protesters take part in a nationwide 24-hour strike in Athens, Greece, Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025, as labor unions demand higher wages and the withdrawal of a bill changing work hours. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)

Protesters with flares wave a Palestinian flag during a nationwide 24-hour strike, as labor unions demand higher wages and the withdrawal of a bill that changes work hours Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)

A woman takes a snapshot at the Greek parliament as Greek police stand guard near a protest during a nationwide 24-hour strike in Athens, Greece, Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)

Protesters take part in a nationwide 24-hour strike in Athens, Greece, Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025, as labor unions demand higher wages and the withdrawal of a bill changing work hours. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

People walk outside the closed main railway station during a nationwide 24-hour strike, as labor demand higher wages and the withdrawal of a bill that changes work hours in Athens, Greece, Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

A traveler stands outside the closed main railway station during a nationwide 24-hour strike, as labor unions demand higher wages and the withdrawal of a bill that changes work hours in Athens, Greece, Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

The Greek capital's main railway station is closed during a nationwide 24-hour strike, as labor unions demand higher wages and the withdrawal of a bill that changes work hours in Athens, Greece, Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

A federal appeals panel on Thursday reversed a lower court decision that released former Columbia University graduate student Mahmoud Khalil from an immigration jail, bringing the government one step closer to detaining and ultimately deporting the Palestinian activist.

The three-judge panel of the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals didn’t decide the key issue in Khalil’s case: whether the Trump administration’s effort to throw Khalil out of the U.S. over his campus activism and criticism of Israel is unconstitutional.

But in its 2-1 decision, the panel ruled a federal judge in New Jersey didn’t have jurisdiction to decide the matter at this time. Federal law requires the case to fully move through the immigration courts first, before Khalil can challenge the decision, they wrote.

“That scheme ensures that petitioners get just one bite at the apple — not zero or two,” the panel wrote. “But it also means that some petitioners, like Khalil, will have to wait to seek relief for allegedly unlawful government conduct.”

The law bars Khalil “from attacking his detention and removal in a habeas petition,” the panel added.

It was not clear whether the government would seek to detain Khalil, a legal permanent resident, again while his legal challenges continue.

Thursday’s decision marked a major win for the Trump administration’s sweeping campaign to detain and deport noncitizens who joined protests against Israel.

In a statement distributed by the American Civil Liberties Union, Khalil said the appeals ruling was “deeply disappointing, but it does not break our resolve.”

He added: “The door may have been opened for potential re-detainment down the line, but it has not closed our commitment to Palestine and to justice and accountability. I will continue to fight, through every legal avenue and with every ounce of determination, until my rights, and the rights of others like me, are fully protected.”

Baher Azmy, one of Khalil's lawyers, said the ruling was “contrary to rulings of other federal courts.” He noted the panel’s finding concerned a “hypertechnical jurisdictional matter,” rather than the legality of the Trump administration’s policy.

“Our legal options are by no means concluded, and we will fight with every available avenue,” he added, saying Khalil would remain free pending the full resolution of all appeals, which could take months or longer.

The ACLU said the Trump administration cannot lawfully re-detain Khalil until the order takes formal effect, which won't happen while he can still immediately appeal.

Khalil's lawyers can request the active judges on the 3rd Circuit hear an appeal, or they can go to the U.S. Supreme Court.

An outspoken leader of the pro-Palestinian movement at Columbia, Khalil was arrested on March 8, 2025. He then spent three months detained in a Louisiana immigration jail, missing the birth of his firstborn.

Federal officials have accused Khalil of leading activities “aligned to Hamas,” though they have not presented evidence to support the claim and have not accused him of criminal conduct. They have also accused Khalil, 30, of failing to disclose information on his green card application.

The government has justified the arrest under a seldom-used statute that allows for the expulsion of noncitizens whose beliefs are deemed to pose a threat to U.S. foreign policy interests.

In June, a federal judge in New Jersey ruled that justification would likely be declared unconstitutional and ordered Khalil released.

President Donald Trump's administration appealed that ruling, arguing the deportation decision should fall to an immigration judge, rather than a federal court.

Khalil has dismissed the allegations as “baseless and ridiculous,” framing his arrest and detention as a “direct consequence of exercising my right to free speech as I advocated for a free Palestine and an end to the genocide in Gaza.”

Judge Arianna Freeman dissented Thursday, writing that her colleagues were holding Khalil to the wrong legal standard. Khalil, she wrote, is raising “now-or-never claims” that can be handled at the district court level. He does not have a final order of removal, which would permit a challenge in an appellate court, she wrote.

Both judges who ruled against Khalil, Thomas Hardiman and Stephanos Bibas, were Republican appointees. President George W. Bush appointed Hardiman to the 3rd Circuit, while Trump appointed Bibas. President Joe Biden, a Democrat, appointed Freeman.

The majority opinion noted Freeman worried the ruling would leave Khalil with no remedy for unconstitutional immigration detention, even if he later can appeal.

“But our legal system routinely forces petitioners — even those with meritorious claims — to wait to raise their arguments, the judges wrote. “To be sure, the immigration judge’s order of removal is not yet final; the Board has not affirmed her ruling and has held the parties’ briefing deadlines in abeyance pending this opinion. But if the Board ultimately affirms, Khalil can get meaningful review.”

The decision comes as an appeals board in the immigration court system weighs a previous order that found Khalil could be deported. His attorneys have argued that the federal order should take precedence.

That judge has suggested Khalil could be deported to Algeria, where he maintains citizenship through a distant relative, or Syria, where he was born in a refugee camp to a Palestinian family.

His attorneys have said he faces mortal danger if forced to return to either country.

Associated Press Writer Larry Neumeister contributed to this story.

FILE - Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil holds a news conference outside Federal Court on Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2025 in Philadelphia (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)