ANNUAL SPECIAL REPORT 2017 43 Police Headquarters cells in Kos (28th February 2017) It is an old two-storey building with a large outdoor space, once used by the Italian command. The cells are located on the ground floor, and are comprised of two cells with built-in beds along the walls, many dirty mattresses on the floor and a toilet. The two cells, of a total capacity of 24 persons, are separated from the outdoor space with bars and a narrow corridor, which serves as a hallway. On the day of inspection, a number of people almost twice the capacity of the premises was held, namely 42 persons. Most of them were detained awaiting return, some of them awaiting their transfer to a Detention Facility and others awaiting administrative expulsion. Some of the prisoners had been held there for months. Detention conditions, due also to the large number of detainees, were appalling. The space was extremely dirty and neither a cleaning crew nor police officers themselves entered the cells. The hallway to the cells was squalid as well. The detainees complained of food quality. It was also observed that there was a total lack of information and of interpreters. In conclusion: The cells are considered to be totally unsuitable for holding even a small number of detainees. However, after communication with the Head of Aliens and Border Security Division, the Ombudsman was assured that the cells will be renovated. Current detention conditions are, by mere visual observation, inhuman and degrading, constituting a violation of article 3 of the ECHR. In specific: Administrative Detention and protective custody of minors at police station cells in Northern Greece In facilities under the jurisdiction of the Police Headquarters of Thessaloniki, where unaccompanied minors were held under protective custody (Immigration Management Department of Mygdonia / Liti, and Sub-directorate of Transits), it was observed, at the time of inspection (17-19.7.2017), that the number of unaccompanied minors under protective custody was especially increased, as no spots in hosting facilities were available. As a result, children remained deprived of liberty for long periods of time, in especially hard conditions, with no yard access. The Police Headquarters reported, indicatively, that from the beginning of June 2017 until the time of inspection, that is, in less than 20 days’ time, 77 minors had been placed under protective custody and only 12 of them were able to be moved into suitable care structures. This resulted in children being overcrowded in Police cells for long periods of time. The situation in a cell at the Department of Mygdonia / Liti, where 17 minors, most of about 15 years of age, remained in a