In Petralona, a neighborhood in Athens, Shahzad Luqman, a 27-year-old Pakistani national, was brutally murdered by members of the neo-Nazi party Golden Dawn. The incident occurred in a context marked by rising tensions around immigration and growing xenophobia in Greece, which were exacerbated by the economic crisis. Luqman, who was working in the city, was attacked while he was on his way home. Witnesses reported that he was confronted by a group of assailants who verbally abused him before the violence escalated to a fatal level.

The murder of Luqman drew significant media coverage and public attention, leading to widespread condemnation from human rights organizations, leftist groups, and various political figures in Greece and abroad. It heightened discussions around the safety of immigrants in Greece, where reported hate crimes were becoming alarmingly frequent. Advocacy groups lobbied for stronger legal frameworks to combat racially motivated violence in the aftermath of this incident.

In the wake of the murder, grassroots organizations and communities began mobilizing against the rise of far-right ideologies. The government, responding to increasing public unrest, initiated discussions regarding new laws to address and prevent hate crimes, aiming to protect minority groups from violence and discrimination. The killing served as a wake-up call regarding the need for societal change in Greece, particularly in relation to how immigrants were treated and perceived.