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ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Inmates at prisons across Greece have gone on hunger strike to protest government plans to build a new maximum security jail, and to demand better detention conditions.
A prisoners' rights group said Tuesday that more than 3,800 people in 13 prisons are taking part in the hunger strike, which started on Monday.
Justice ministry officials said participation was lower, but that it was too early to provide an accurate number.
Greek prisons are notoriously overcrowded, and prison guards complain that they are severely understaffed.
In Athens, police detained about 50 people who tried to march to Prime Minister Antonis Samaras' residence late Tuesday to protest the planned new prison.
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