'Sunbed war' in Greece leaves 82-year-old dead after beach fight

Key Points:

• A confrontation between two elderly men over a sunbed at Akti Vouliagmenis beach in Athens resulted in the death of an 82-year-old man who suffered a cardiac arrest during the fight.
• The 76-year-old man involved was arrested on suspicion of causing fatal bodily injury, while a 21-year-old woman accompanying him was released.
• The incident highlights growing tensions in Greece over the practice of reserving sunbeds, which has increased with booming tourism and has sparked public anger over high prices and restricted beach access.
• Private businesses often occupy large stretches of coastline with sunbeds, sometimes exceeding legal limits and limiting free public access, prompting citizen movements like the "towel movement" to defend beach accessibility.
• Greek authorities are combating illegal sunbed placements using drones, satellite imagery, and a complaints app, enforcing laws that require at least 70% of beaches to remain unobstructed and sunbeds to be set back from the shoreline.