Farmers demanding withheld EU subsidies have blocked Crete's airports.

Demonstrators, the vast majority of whom were farmers and, according to Greek media, several hundred people, bypassed both police and fences on Monday and parked on the runways of Crete's two largest airports, in Heraklion and Chania.

Several of them intend to stay until Tuesday morning to protest against the authorities in Athens withholding EU subsidies that the farmers believe they are entitled to.

The demonstration is part of nationwide protests against Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and his government, who are being blamed because all benefit claimants are being scrutinised following previous fraud with EU grants, totalling the equivalent of 300 million Swedish kronor.

Sheep farmers are also battling a widespread epidemic of sheep and goat pox in the country. Over 400,000 sheep and goats have been culled, and farmers are demanding compensation for the slaughtered animals as well. The epidemic has also led to warnings of a coming shortage of feta cheese, BBC reports.

Source: Aftonbladet.se-TT