Greek court rules far right Golden Dawn party guilty of operating as a criminal organization

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — A Greek court has ruled the far-right Golden Dawn party was operating as a criminal organization, following a politically charged five-year trial against dozens of defendants, including former lawmakers of what had once been Greece’s third-largest party. The court ruled Wednesday that seven of the party’s 18 former lawmakers, including party leader Nikos Michaloliakos, were guilty of leading a criminal organization, while the others were guilty of participating in a criminal organization. As news of the verdicts broke, cheers and celebrations erupted among 20,000 people gathered in an anti-fascist rally outside. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said the verdict “ends a traumatic cycle” in the country’s public life.