Young offenders will soon be housed in a building at the Menoyia migrant detention centre, Justice Minister Marios Hartsiotis said on Wednesday.

Speaking to the House ethics committee, he said a spare building at the site, which houses migrants awaiting repatriation, is set to undertake the function of housing young offenders.

He said the building at Menoyia earmarked to house the young offenders “meets the relevant provisions of the regulations for this use” and that for this reason, “the construction of a new building will not be necessary.”

The matter was then approved by cabinet later the same day, with Hartsiotis saying after the cabinet meeting that parliament had given him until January 2026 to resolve the issue.

“Taking into account the deadline, but also in general many and various other issues related to the building in question, it has been decided to use Menoyia not only as a detention centre for children, but also for holding cells,” he said.

He said the area is expected to be empty of irregular migrants by the end of next year, as new facilities are expected to be built in the nearby area of Limnes.

“The area in question is therefore being used [to house young offenders] because, first of all, the specifications defined in the relevant regulations which have been sent to parliament for approval have defined limits, which seem to have been satisfied to a great extent [by the building],” he said.

These regulations, he said, relate to the dimensions of the cells, the entertainment areas, restaurants, sports facilities, and other areas of the site.