An appellate-level administrative court in Athens on Monday accepted a request by the Tsipras government to temporarily freeze the granting of political asylum to one out of eight Turkish servicemen that have sought refuge in Greece after fleeing Turkey after a failed coup attempt in July 2016.
The decision, ahead of a full judicial hearing on the unprecedented request to overturn the asylum ruling, will reportedly cite "state interests" and the "interests" of the asylum seeker, identified as the co-pilot of a helicopter that landed in northeast Greece.
The hearing is set for Feb. 15.
The leftist-rightist coalition government has filed a motion to overturn the asylum decision, issued by an independent three-member committee.
The Turkish officer, in fact, was re-arrested on Monday by police, and taken to the Athens area's police headquarters building, where he will be held in custody ahead of the hearing over the Tsipras government's attempt to overturn his asylum status.
