Residents will gather in the beachside area of Hellenikon this morning to demand from authorities the removal of a mobile telephony antenna, in line with a recent decision by Greece’s highest court.

The Council of State, the country’s highest administrative court, said in a provisional ruling that the Cosmote antenna should be switched off.

“The mobile phone company claims the antenna does not operate. However, according to a recent test, it was shown to be still working,” said Hellenikon Mayor Christos Kortzidis.

Town-planning officials and the Public Power Corporation (PPC) say that they cannot remove it until the court’s decision is final.

The antenna, located on the corner of Thrakis and Tripoleos streets, sits about 50 meters away from a child-minding center, a kindergarten, a primary school and the municipality’s sports facilities.

“In the last five years, we have made continuous efforts to have it removed. In the past, we managed to pull down three mobile phone antennas that did not have permits from the town-planning office,” added the mayor.