Coordinated Sabotage Targets Airbnb Key Boxes Across Athens
Source: Act for Freedom Now
Executive Summary
An anarchist collective operating under the banner Act for Freedom Now claimed responsibility for the coordinated sabotage of 420 key boxes used for Airbnb apartments across multiple neighborhoods in Athens on January 11, 2026. The action was publicly framed as an act of solidarity with squatters facing prison sentences and as retaliation against short term rental platforms accused of driving gentrification, displacement, and housing insecurity. The communique explicitly identifies Airbnb infrastructure as a legitimate target and situates the sabotage within a broader anti state and anti capitalist campaign in Greece.
Analysis
The communique frames property damage against Airbnb associated infrastructure as a justified and repeatable tactic tied to long running grievances over housing, tourism, and state repression. The messaging signals intent to normalize sabotage as a form of political pressure and community defense rather than a one off protest action.
The group stated it sabotaged 420 Airbnb key boxes in “various neighborhoods of Athens,” indicating a coordinated and distributed action rather than a single localized incident.
The action was justified as solidarity with members of the Koukaki squat community, several of whom have reportedly received first degree prison sentences of 6.5 years following evictions carried out by the Greek state in 2020.
The communique explicitly blames Airbnb style short term rentals, foreign investment funds, and the Greek state for displacement, rising living costs, and the erosion of neighborhood cohesion, particularly in areas such as Koukaki and Exarcheia.
The narrative situates Airbnb within a broader framework of “violent touristification” and treats platform related access infrastructure as a symbolic and practical vulnerability. While the action described focuses on property damage, the rhetoric endorses escalation and collective participation, raising the likelihood of copycat actions or further targeting of short term rental infrastructure during periods of heightened legal or political pressure.
