The case of the dead infant in Kypseli has brought gaps in Greece’s child protection system back into focus, particularly regarding the family’s three minor children, a 15-year-old girl and two boys aged 12 and 9, according to reports by To Vima and Kathimerini. A 43-year-old man and a 38-year-old woman believed to be their parents have been arrested, while their relationship to the children is expected to be established through DNA testing.
According to a statement by The Smile of the Child, two anonymous reports were made in 2020 and 2024 concerning children matching the description of those in the family. The first was forwarded to the relevant prosecutor’s office, while the second was not because it did not contain enough information to identify the family.
In 2025, two of the children were removed by order of a prosecutor and taken to the Agia Sofia Children’s Hospital. According to the reports, the hospital’s social services already had a file on the children documenting, among other things, prolonged absence from school, frequent changes of residence and learning difficulties. However, the man believed to be their father later entered the hospital and removed them.
Children taken to hospitals by order of a prosecutor are registered with prosecutors’ offices but are not automatically placed in foster care or a residential care facility.
Children taken to hospitals by order of a prosecutor are registered with prosecutors’ offices but are not automatically placed in foster care or a residential care facility. Until their case is reviewed and a decision is made on their next form of care, they can remain in an institutional gap. According to data from Greece’s National Centre for Social Solidarity (EKKA), 93 minors were being accommodated in 21 hospitals in the second quarter of 2026.
In practice, hospitals often end up serving as temporary accommodation because of a lack of immediate alternatives. At the same time, hospital staff do not have the authority to prevent parents from being present or to take responsibility for guarding the children unless there is a specific prosecutor’s order for protective police supervision.
During the same period, there were only 13 active professional foster carers across the country. Short-term professional foster care, which could cover the critical period between a child’s removal from an unsuitable family environment and the finding of a more stable solution, remains largely inactive.
Meanwhile, the unified child protection protocol, which is intended to connect and coordinate the services involved, including the Juvenile Prosecutor’s Office, social services and the police, has yet to be fully implemented.
Sources: To Vima, Kathimerini
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