Current Events

The Cyprus Met office has announced that isolated rainfall, along with a considerable drop in temperature levels are to be expected.

They further said that the week would begin with sunny skies, with temperatures of 13 and 21 degrees Celsius in the mountains and inland respectively.

The week, however, will likely soon descend into thunderstorms and rain showers, starting from the west, and then spreading to other areas.

Winds are likely to flow from the northeast to the southeast, while temperatures would drop to 10, 14 and 7 degrees Celsius inland, on the coast and on mountains respectively.

The Met Office has predicted that the middle of the week will see the most rainfall, and the weather shall recover thereafter.

The number of tourists arriving in the country has increased by a significant percentage.

According to reports from the CNA, the total number of tourist arrivals in 2022 surpassed 3 million as of November 2022, which is much more than the numbers from the year prior. This, despite the war in Ukraine and the resulting sanctions impacting Russia,

The island nation’s travel sector took a major hit due to the coronavirus pandemic, and tourism did not get a jumpstart until September 2021, when the island saw over 300,000 visitors.

According to the Tourism ministry, this was over 288.4% higher than 2020, which only saw 87,334 arrivals.

The latest incident has the police looking for two youths first led the police on a car chase, then crashed the car and proceeded to flee the scene of the crime.

According to Michalis Nikolaou, the chief of Paphos police, the incident happened just after dispatch received the report of the youths breaking traffic rules in their car.

A police patrol car spotted the car and signaled it to stop near Tasos Papadopoulou Avenue, but the car continued to speed away instead.

The patrol unit proceeded to follow them, leading to the car crashing twice before their vehicle was immobilized. The suspects then left the car and walked out.

In addition to contraband, the police recovered several military-issued bullets from the car.

The Holy Synod of Cyprus has announced that the island nation’s new archbishop shall be announced soon.

The announcement comes after the potential list of successors to Chrysostomos II were narrowed down to a total of three candidates.

The three candidates in question are Limassol Bishop Athanasios, Paphos Bishop Georgios, and Tamassou Bishop Isaias, each of whom received 35.68%, 18.39% and 18.1% votes respectively.

Cypriot bank RCB’s license has been suspended by the European Central Bank (ECB), months after the latter imposed restrictions upon the former.

The restrictions came right after RCB partnered up with Hellenic Bank to sell a performing loan portfolio worth over €556 million.

While the ECB allowed the deal to operate, other parts of the bank’s business were put under restrictions.

According to a statement by the ECB, the decision has been made in light of the voluntary phase-out of RCB’s banking operations.

RCB began operations in 1995, most of which were aimed to serve Russian clients. This was stopped earlier in 2022.

Over half a million Cypriot citizens will be voting to elect their new president, who will be succeeding Nicos Anastasiades.

The information, which has been published in a decree, issued by the island nation’s Chief Election Office mentions the 12th of February as the date of the election, and the 5th of January, 2023 as the deadline for applying for candidacy.

However, it is certain that President Anastasiades will not be returning in 2023 since he explicitly announced that that he shall not stand as a candidate, having served as the president for two terms already.

So far, ten candidates have already announced themselves.

A police chase in Nicosia on the Nicosia highway has resulted in a traffic mishap.

The chain of events started when the Police spotted a speeding motorbike within minutes of receiving complaints about someone creating a nuisance around the Athalassa Avenue area.

The police first signaled a stop sign to the driver, who proceeded to ignore them and drive on.

They then started chasing the man, but instead of stopping, he proceeded to drive away from them, and committed various other traffic offenses in the process.

He eventually met an accident after colliding with another vehicle at the end of Pera Chorio Nisou.

The Police took the motorist to Nicosia General Hospital. Some drugs were found on him.

In what is being considered a great move towards preserving the environment, The Forestry Department of Cyprus organized ‘Tree Week’ – to spread awareness and better practice of conservation.

The week-long event kicked off with a distribution of free saplings to the local residents.

Costas Kades, the Agricultural minister of Cyprus, who was at the event held at Agios Dometios’ School, gave a speech, emphasizing on how everyone should work for a greener and more sustainable future.

He further mentioned the various benefits that come with conserving forests, environmental and otherwise.

The week will see several of such events being held all over the island nation.

The Cyprus Police is on the lookout for a man who has committed fraud by wrongful representation.

According to Michael Nicolaou, a spokesman for the Paphos Police, the case in question was brought to them by a man, 38, who is the real owner of the vehicle.

He lodged a complaint with the police, claiming that he had given the car to his friend for safekeeping while going abroad for holiday – only to return and find it sold.

He claims that when he returned back, his friend started to hesitate and made unnecessary delays in giving back the vehicle.

He then reported the matter to the police – early investigation revealed that his friend had in fact sold the vehicle to another party.

Since then, the police have been on the lookout for this man – there is an active arrest warrant against him.

The value of the car is estimated to be approximately 10,000 Euros.

The Cyprus Foreign Ministry has announced that it will begin to charge Russian nationals for tourist visas.

The charges will be 80 Euros for adults, and 40 Euros for children between the ages of 6 to 12.

The development comes into practice after the European Union ended its simplified visa regime with Russia in early-September.

The European Commission has further recommended its member states have a more stringent approach when issuing Russians’ Schengen visas.

Thus far, countries bordering Russia such as Poland, Czechia, Finland and the Baltic states have banned entry for Russian tourists.

Cyprus’ Traffic Police has reported that a car erupted in flames on the streets of Nicosia.

The car, which had Greek Cypriot number plates burst into flames on Pentadaktylos mountain near Kyrenia road.

The driver, age undisclosed, was found unharmed.

According to investigators, the fire started due to an electrical issue in the engine. Firefighters did extinguish the flames, but the car was completely destroyed.

In what is being considered an unfavorable development, a clash between two groups at a migrant center led to an eruption of migrants.

A scuffle between the two largest migrant groups, those from Nigeria & those from Congo escalated and turned violent, leading to fires being lit and stones being hurled at each other.

Ultimately, the police had to intervene and fire tear gas to bring the situation under control.

Firefighters were also brought on scene to extinguish the fire, which they were successful at.

One person was admitted to the hospital for treatment, while others were treated by paramedics on site.

The police also reported that several of the tents were burned down.

Paphos police has booked more than a dozen drivers, primarily on grounds of driving above the prescribed speed, and driving under the influence of alcohol.

Over 49 drivers that were charged, over 19 were charged for driving under the influence, while one each was charged for being under the influence of drugs, and possessing drugs.

The Paphos police also revealed that there have been some other charges, such as businesses operating without the appropriate licenses.

For instance, two business’s musical instruments were taken away on grounds of noise pollution. Yet four others were charged for operating without a license.

Petty crimes have steadily been on the rise in Cyprus, and the latest incident only proves this to be true.

In this particular incident, a man lost his wallet at a Paphos fruit market.

He approached the police to report the incident, who then investigated the matter. Upon checking the closed-circuit feed, they found two women taking the lost wallet, and not returning the same to any authorities.

The police then released the photos of the women caught in the footage, and released them to the press.

Soon enough, the two women were identified – a mother-daughter duo from Bulgaria living in the island nation. Later on, the women were found and arrested, based on the belief that they intended to keep the wallet, along with its content for themselves.

The two will be brought before the Paphos District Court for a hearing of their case.

Bishop Athanasios of Limassol has tested positive for COVID-19.

The Cyprus News Agency published the news on their official Facebook page called the “Friends of the Metropolitan of Limassol Athanasiou.”

The CNA explained that while the senior cleric has tested positive, his health is stable, and every appropriate measure is being carried out. For the time being, he will stay under confinement – until he tests negative for the disease

According to a statement from a source in the Limassol diocese, the bishop, who is one of the six candidates in the official run for the archbishop position (after the demise of Chrysostomos II), had blessed the new stadium of Limassol in its inauguration ceremony.

A 4.0 magnitude earthquake hit coastal Paphos in the early hours of the morning.

The earthquake, which happened at 2:33 am, Cyprus time, occurred at a depth of about two kilometers underground.

Many eyewitness reports, however, stated that the earthquake felt very strong.

According to a statement by the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre, such an experience is not uncommon – people tend to feel shallower earthquakes more, since they occur closer to the surface.

Tremors were felt and reported in nearby areas – including Choletria, Emba, Kissonerga, Konia, Chlorakas & Yeroskipou – all of which are in the vicinity of the epicenter.

The meteorological department of Cyprus has announced that the week will see varying degrees of weather, from all out sunny to partially cloudy.

Wind speeds will also vary accordingly, with 3-4 Beaufort. Temperatures can rise up to 19 degrees Celsius in the mountains, 27 degrees in the West Coast, 29 degrees in the other coasts, and 29 degrees inland.

People are advised to take adequate protection against weather, should it pose any adverse situations.

October 25th partial solar eclipse will be visible from several African, Asian and European countries, and Cyprus is no exception.

According to an announcement by the Fakas Institute’s Observatory, the eclipse will happen during the afternoon.

Different sections of the world will see varying parts of the eclipse – the most will be seen by Russian, which will see eighty percent of the sun covered up by the moon.

A partial solar eclipse takes place when a section of the sun is covered by the moon. It is advised that people take care of their eyes while witnessing the eclipse.

Pope Francis and President Anastasiades’ meeting at the Vatican involved the discussion of a number of important topics in the world.

The President of the island nation, who went to the Vatican to meet with the Pope, was welcomed at the Apostolic Palace, and initially met with Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State of the Cardinal.

A government announcement revealed that issued discussed between them include the Lebanese and Sri Lankan Crisis, climate change, migration pressures, the Ukraine war, and of course the Cyprus issue.

It was decided that a Vatican embassy and a Vicarage will be established in Cyprus, on land owned by the state.

Additionally, the Pope announced that President Anastasiades will be awarded the Order of Pius

Two Indian nationals were arrested by the Limassol Narcotic Squad, after being caught selling heroin in public.

The information on the drugs, which were being sold in the public lavatories of Heroes Square, were picked up by Narcotic Squad, which then set up a sting that led to the arrest of the two men.

The police initially arrested an Indian, aged 23, whose movements and behaviors portrayed being under the influence of drugs. A quick inspection showed that he had two empty heroin syringes with him.

They then went on to inspect the toilets, where they found two other men, aged 24 and 29. They collectively had 17 grams of heroin in 15 packets, along with a precision ruler.

The men initially claimed that it was for personal use, but confessed the truth under interrogation.