Monastiraki

Activists demonstrated outside the Varvakeios fish and meat market in downtown Athens on Saturday to protest the slaughter of animals. The demo was organized by the animal rights group Direct Action Everywhere and began at nearby Monastiraki Square. [InTime News]

A 51-year-old man was arrested in central Monastiraki Square in Athens on Saturday for the illegal possession of an almost intact column capital. His arrest took place after police received a tipoff.

The Ionic-style capital, which was found and confiscated after officers searched his home, is dated to either the Classical or Hellenistic age.

Three Pakistani migrants were slightly injured after a brawl broke out in Monastiraki Square in central Athens between groups of migrants from different ethnic groups.

Police are investigating the incident which took place shortly before midnight.

No more details were immediately available.

The HOME Project (which stands for "Help, Overcome, Motivate and Empower") provides shelter and work for young refugees in Greece. The international nonprofit organization currently houses 200 children in 10 homes in Athens. Here are some of their stories, in their own words. 

This is the first part of the stories. A second part will follow on Monday.

The short-term rental market is booming in Greece, with an estimated 12,000 properties in the capital available to visitors via Airbnb. Nationwide, more than 50,000 rentals are hosted on the platform, 14,650 of which are in Crete alone.

A gang that robbed tourists and locals in the center of Athens was recently caught by police after many months of systematic surveillance. Among those arrested, mostly Bulgarians and Romanians, were eight minors. 

Athens is evolving into an international destination for small and medium-sized property investors, focusing mainly on homes, thanks to low sale prices and the prospect of immediate returns through short-term leasing on Internet platforms.

Local blues/rock act the Rosewood Brothers will be playing at the Six Dogs venue in downtown Athens on Thursday, May 17. Formed in Athens in 2008 they recently released their first album, "Soul Blossom," which has met with warm reviews. Also on stage on the night will be Low Gravity, a high-voltage instrumental band whose sounds blend rock, blues, funk and 70s space rock.

The IPAS Film Festival, dedicated to the work of filmmakers from around the world with defiantly independent political and social visions, runs at Booze Cooperativa from April 16-22 and brings together 55 short films and 20 documentaries, among others, from 22 countries. Screenings take place daily from 5.30-11.30 p.m.

Tourism is breathing new life into Athens's beleaguered commercial triangle - the area encompassed by Syntagma, Omonia and Monastiraki squares - as the share of shuttered shops has dropped below 25 percent for the first time since September 2012, when the Hellenic Confederation of Commerce and Entrepreneurship (ESSE) started the relevant survey.