Current Events

Cyprus Police have revealed that a bomb has exploded in a company vehicle in the Limassol area.

The police, who are currently investigating the situation, said that the explosion took place in the early morning hours and the reason behind it was a low-level Improvised Explosive Device (IED) that was placed on a lorry which was parked in an open area in Ayios Ioannis.

The police are currently treated the incident as an attempt of vandalism with explosives. Limassol CID is continuing their investigation into the matter.

Jurgen Stock, Secretary-General of Interpol has publicly praised of Cyprus and called it a “very safe” country.

According to Mr. Stock, the fact that millions of tourists choose the island nation as their ideal holiday destination is itself testament to the fact that it is safer than many. He further added that the level pf cooperation between Interpol and Cyprus is one of the best within the police community, and serves as an ideal model to follow for several other nations.

Meeting with Justice Minister Giorgos Savvides, Mr. Stock discussed mutual issues of interest and exchanged ideas and opinions on areas where either side could cooperate – or cooperate better.

Stock further added that the purpose of his Cyprus visit is to further strengthen the level of cooperation between the two entities, and that he is looking forward to it happening.

A missing Nigerian man’s body has been found in the boot of a car.

The man, identified as Obasanjo Adeola Owoyale, went missing on the 1^st of July, and was discovered more than a day later.

According to initial investigations, Mr. Owoyale was probably killed elsewhere, wrapped in a blanket, and then stuffed in the car boot where his body was discovered by police officers. The police officers had gone to check when multiple people in the area reported of a very foul smell coming out of the car.

The police are currently studying security camera footage within the area to find out if any suspects may have been caught on video.

The Meteorological Office of Cyprus has issued its second another yellow alert, warning residents of the sudden and ongoing rise in temperature. According to the Met Office, the maximum temperature is set to hit 32 C near the Troodos’ peaks area, and 41 C in the inland area. Said warning shall remain in full force from 11 am to 5 pm.

Additionally, the Health and Labor Ministries both issued warnings requesting employers, workers, and vulnerable groups to be careful of the weather and stay indoors and out of the way of the heat.

In the meantime, The Forest Department made a red alert, citing the high risk of fires as the reason.

In the ongoing case of Turkey drilling on the Cyprus coast, the USA’s government has urged Turkey to cease its oil-drilling operations.

In a statement, the State Department condemned the act, calling it a “provocative step” that would increase tension in the region. They further said that the island’s reserves should be shared between communities on an equal basis, just like all other types of resources.

Turkey has so far declined to comment on the matter – it has not responded to requests by both the USA and Greek Cypriots, who have and are protesting on the issue.

The island nation of Cyprus was split into a Greek South Cyprus and a Turkish North Cyprus since 1974, when Turkey sent its own troops in response to a military coup by the Greeks. While the Greek portion is recognized internationally, the Turkish north is recognized exclusively by Turkey.

The Cyprus has criticized Turkeys second attempt to drill on their offshore areas in search of gas sources.

The island country has condemned the act as an escalation of breach of international law and will take any measures necessary to protect its legal and diplomatic rights.

In response to the above, Turkey has replied that it is in fact protecting its own rights along with those of Turkish Cypriots by utilizing hydrocarbon deposits in the area.

The Turkish currently have two vessels – Fatih which started drilling 42 miles off Cyprus’ west coast the month before, and Yavuz, which is on route to a place off of the Karpas peninsula on the east coast of Cyprus.

Turkey’s act has been heavily criticized by the European Union. Meanwhile, Cyprus has urged Ankara to participate in peace talks once again.

In a bid to improve the tourism industry and help it flourish further, Cyprus officials are making a joint effort with its neighbors. Savvas Perdios, Tourism Deputy Minister of Cyprus, has met with his counterparts in Jordan and Lebanon, and will be visiting Israel, Greece, Egypt to reach an agreement when it comes to common tourism packages.

According to a press release made by the office of the deputy minister, Mr. Perdios has submitted proposals to each country for the purpose of reaching said common agreement.

Common tourism packages are set to include places of natural as well as urban interest, events of significance, monuments, and cultural attractions. Authorities assume that this would prove to be far more popular with visitors who could visit attractions in all countries as part of a single package.

The deputy ministry wishes for all efforts to reach a desirable outcome as soon as is possible, and to that end, is working methodically to achieve the goal.

A funeral service has been held for two of the seven victims of the serial killing in Cyprus.

The service of the victims – a mother and a daughter – 36-year-old Livia Florentina Bunea and her 8-year-old daughter, Elena Natalia Bunea, – was attended by Senior Greek Orthodox priests. They were the first two of seven killings committed by the career soldier who killed five foreign women and two girls.

Also present were relatives, who wept at the service and at the coffins of the dead, placed beside one another in a village church in the southwest of Nicosia, as well as members of the Cyprus police and the Cyprus fire chiefs, along with some of the many divers who had searched for the bodies after the army officer’s confession to killing the foreigners.

Nikos Christodoulides, foreign minister of Cyprus has announced that twenty-one will be participating in the drill organized by Cyprus which famously involves the possible evacuation of civilians of nations in the Middle Eastern region.

According to Mr. Christodoulides’ statement, made during the final phase of the drill, Cyprus will have a crucial role to play here whilst functioning as a “safe transfer hub” for the region.

Participants include the USA, the UK, Germany, France and Israel. The drill itself will have several rescue operation scenarios during the transport process.

Mr. Christodoulides has stated that the increasing number of countries in the exercise shows that the task at hand has value and that countries involved understand that fully.

The last time Cyprus was used as a ‘safe haven’ was in in 2006, when around 60,000 civilians were evacuated from Lebanon.

Palestinian officials have announced that the trilateral summit between itself and Cyprus and Greece will be held before 2019 ends.

This announcement comes after Tasos Tzionis, Cypriot permanent secretary ambassador’s visit to Ramallah. Mr. Tzionis held several bilateral meetings here along with Dr Riad al-Malki, prime minister of Palestine and Dr Amal Jadu, his assistant minister.

According to the announcement, Malki will be making an official visit to the island nation to finalize arrangements for the of a joint committee meeting, which would kick-off preparations for the Greece-Cyprus-Palestine trilateral summit  – all of which is set to take place before the end of the year, and in all possibility in Cyprus.

Malki was present at the announcement praised the historical ties between the two nations and went on to call for their efforts in strengthening the process of mutual relations and development.

In a bid to improve odds of resolving the Cyprus issue and easing the divide between people on the basis of their ethnicity, Turkish Cyprus is all set to “reopen” the city of Varosha and allow for people to settle there again.

Kudret Özersay, foreign minister and deputy prime minister of the unrecognized Turkish Cyprus “nation,” has revealed that the “Council of Ministers” in the region will be evaluating the conditions for action in the city, which technically is in a military zone. He added that all actions in this regard will be coordinated with Ankara, and a team of experts from the latter country shall be visiting Varosha to make a record of all movable as well as immovable property. The next steps will then be decided on the basis of the results of the study.

Özersay also spoke of the Maronite village, saying that contracts will be signed to allow current residents to move to other places, and to allow 10-15 homes to be returned.

Once one of Cyprus’ most popular tourist destinations, Varosha was abandoned in 1974, Varosha continues to stay in Turkish occupation.

In what is being considered a political move that will help improve international relations between the Mediterranean region and other parts in Europe, Greece and Cyprus are expanding cooperation agreements beyond their region by including Armenia into their fold as well.

Armenia is latest in a train of new additions which include Lebanon, Jordan, Israel, and Egypt. Armenia, along with Greece and Cyprus will be holding their first meeting soon.

Speaking at a conference, Christodoulides said that the aim of this initiative is to promote stability, peace, and security through increased diplomacy and more political dialogue.

Foreign Minister of Armenia, Zohrab Mnatsakanyan, has stressed on the importance of the new platform, saying how the three countries’ next joint effort moves will help strengthen all of them individually, as well as their relationships. He added that Armenia will be hosting a summit soon.

Crime in Cyprus has been on the rise, and going by the latest news, it is going far beyond the reach of preventative measures.

In what is another instance among several this this year, a 42-year-old man has been arrested and brought into custody for allegedly possessing and distributing child pornography.

The man, who is from Paphos, had his residence searched by police officers by means of a judicial warrant. They found and confiscated several incriminating materials, including a computer, a mobile phone with a SIM card, as well as two electronic data storage devices – all of which will be examined.

Further investigation is underway.

Dimitris Christofias, the Communist leader known best for his disastrous term as the “unlucky” Cyprus President has died at the age of 72. The former President, whose one and only term was marred with political frustrations, mishaps and financial crisis died in the capital city of Nicosia.

Born to a working-class family in Kyrenia (now in Turkish Cyprus), Mr. Christofias studied history at the Academy of Social Sciences in Moscow, and became involved with politics and the left-wing ideology as a young man. He returned to Cyprus after earning his doctorate in Moscow, joined the Communist Party and rose steadily through the ranks, earning the post of secretary general in 1988. He became Cyprus’s first ever communist leader in 2008 by securing one-third votes in the initial round and a clear majority in the runoff. He was also regarded as the most popular politician at the time.

His term, however, was a disastrous one, with Cyprus reaching the height of financial crisis, further deterioration of the Cyprus issue, and the explosion near the naval base. The latter essentially ended his short-lived and already damaged Presidential career, as Mr. Christofias was blamed for not paying any attention to any amount of growing warnings of things becoming dodgy in the Mediterranean area.

By the time of his term’s expiry in February 2013, Christofias had become highly unpopular, and to that end did not opt to try and get himself re-elected. He was succeeded by political conservative leader Nicos Anastasiades.

According to the Progressive Party of the Working People (AKEL), Mr. Christofias’s had been suffering from a severe lung illness. He is survived by his wife, Elsie, son, Christos, and daughters, Christina and Marianna.

In what is the first serial killing incident on the island nation – the Police have found yet another dead body in due course of their investigations.

The 7^th body found is that of the daughter of the first victim. Found in Nicosia, the body was discovered at around 6 meters depth, wrapped in a bedsheet and weighed down with a block of cement. Said discovery completes the obtaining of the dead bodies of all the seven victims that the suspect has confessed to murdering.

The investigation sparked off after the police found the body of one of the seven victims – that of Marry Rose Tiburcio, a 38-year-old Filipino national in a flooded mine shaft in the capital city of Nicosia on the 14^th of April 2019. Tiburcio, along with her 6-Year-old daughter were reported missing on May 5, 2018.

According to the Cyprus Police, the suspect, who is a career officer in the Cypriot National Guard, has confessed to killing five adult women and two children – all of whom were foreign nationals. According to his confession, he met some of these victims on an online dating site where he went by the name “Orestes.”

Emmanuel Macron’s support for Cyprus has upset Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Turkish President, and the latter has not hesitated to express his dissatisfaction.

The Turkish leader is upset at his French counterpart for supporting the island nation – and not Turkey, and for approving the arrest warrants that Cyprus issued on the crew of Fatih , the Turkish drillshi –  in the dispute between the two countries over Turkey attempt to drill in the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of Cyprus.

Speaking to a journalist from Sabah, a Turkish daily whilst returning from a conference in Tajikistan, Erdogan expressed his dissatisfaction, saying that those who do not have any right to speak about Eastern Mediterranean issues – like the French – must refrain from doing so and not act as interlopers. He mentioned that while countries like the UK, Greece and Cyprus have all the right, being guarantors, to express their views, France has none, and therefore must keep out of the issue completely.

He concluded his statement by saying that anyone living in Cyprus are entitled to and must get equal shares and rights, regardless of their ethnic background.

Cyprus Foreign Minister Foreign Minister and United Arab Emirates Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to establish a joint cooperation committee.

The two Foreign Ministers, who met in Nicosia, also signed an agreement to foster better cooperation in matters of technical and economic importance between the and technical cooperation between the two nations.

Sheikh Al Nahyan, who came to Nicosia from his home in the UAE, met Demetris Syllouris, the House President and discussed at length the various political developments in the eastern Mediterranean region. Said discussion included the Cyprus problem, its ramifications and possible solutions.

In turn, Mr. Syllouris informed Sheikh Al Nahyan various initiatives, including (but not limited to) promoting the Arabic language in Cyprus, the creation of a Middle East cooperation centre in the island nation, and of course, ways to promote regional, bilateral and multilateral relations across all countries and regions.

Accompanying Sheikh Al Nahyan was Sultan Ahmed Ghamen Al Suawaidi, UAE’s Ambassador to Cyprus along with a group of his ministry’s top officials.

Cyprus’ Finance Ministry has revealed that the island nation will soon issue bonds worth 5 years and 30 years. The debt issuance will be carried out by all major financial instructions, including Deutsche Bank, Barclays, J.P. Morgan, Goldman Sachs, Societe Generale and Morgan Stanley.

The Ministry has revealed that Cyprus – with its Standard & Poor’s rating of ΒΒΒ-, Moody’s rating of Ba2-,  Fitch’s rating of BBB, and finally, DBRS rating of BBBL will issue five-year maturity 2024 (euro) and thirty-year maturity 2049 (euro).

The purpose of said activity is to pay early the loan worth 2.5 billion euros that was taken from Russia, which currently has 1.57 billion euros worth of outstanding.

Kathimerini has said that given the inability of the new debt issuance strategy to make full re-repayment, they would offer a solution of partial repayment.

Auctions for both bond types would take place at the same time.

Nicos Anastasiades the President of Cyprus made his first and very historic visit to the country of Georgia. First arriving in the capital city of Tbilisi, the President met with the Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili.

He also held several important meetings with several key officials, including (but not limited to) Prime Minister Mamuka Bakhtadze, as well as Parliamentary Speaker Irakli Kobakhidze.

The purpose of the trip was to have the two nations know each other better, to improve upon trade settings, investment arrangements and most importantly, bilateral relations, between the two nations.

In a recent spate of drug-related arrests, A 39-year-old man has been arrested in connection with a case that dealt with the alleged smuggling of over 25 Kgs of cannabis.

The drugs were in a woman’s luggage. The 34-year-old woman had arrived at Paphos airport from last October. The cannabis, weighing a total of 25.3kg were discovered by customs and later by police officers – stored in 20 nylon bags.

The woman in question was arrested on the spot and will stay under custody till the trial.

The man, on the other hand, was arrested in Greece on the basis of the Europe-wide arrest warrant issued by Cypriot authorities and extradited to the island nation. He was formally arrested by Cyprus.