Current Events

Marina Hadjimanolis, Cyprus’ Deputy Minister of Shipping has revealed that the missile-hit ship True Confidence no longer any Cyprus nationals on it.

Deputy Minister Hadjimanolis (who is in Brussels attending the Belgian President’s seminar on EU Council on the living conditions of the seafarers) revealed that the ship in question does not hoist the Cypriot flag, is not publicly or privately owned by the island nation. That said, it does have a company that manages it – one that has its offices in Cyprus.

This news comes after Reuters recently revealed that at least 2 sailors lost their lives in the attack by the Houthis.

In a bid to further its diplomatic stance, Armenia is set to start its mission in the island nation of Cyprus.

According to a statement by Ararat Mirzoyan, the Armenian Foreign Minister made in a joint press conference with his Cypriot counterpart in Yerevan, the Armenian government plans to open their mission within the year.

He further added that this development will help forge better relations between the two countries, and better cooperation in the region in general.

A worrying trend reveals that over 25% of all students have been victims of bullying.

A statement by the “Hope for Children” CRC Policy Center, which conducted the study that makes this reveal – said that that many students have admitted to have been bullied – either physically or online.

The Policy Center made these findings in its study on school violence conducted, which it conducted for the National Strategy for Prevention and Management of School Violence (held between 2018 and 2024).

The results of the research reveal that verbal and social bullying are the most rampant, followed by cyberbullying.

The study also urged for finding better methods of interventions and establishing more comprehensive support structures for both prevention and management of such situations.

The weather in the coming days, dubbed ‘Stinky Thursday’s’ is likely to have partly cloudy skies, and might have people experience isolated episodes of rain showers and generally stormy weather.

While the inland is most likely to experience the turbulence, Cyprus’ east and south could also get rain and storms.

Temperatures inland are expected to go up to 21 degrees Celsius, while those in the hills as well as coasts are expected to go up to 10 degrees Celsius.

Winds could go up to 5 on the Beaufort scale, with winds going north-westwards.

The mountainous areas might get frost during the night time.

Two monks from the Monastery of Saint Avvakoum (Habbakuk) in the village of Fterikoudi have been booked for embezzlement and sexual assault.

The monks in question have been found to have engaged in sexual activities in the monastery itself.

The matter became worse when, in the face of their denial, hard evidence emerged in the form of CCTV footage that pretty much proves the allegation to be true.

The development spurred the Bishop of Tamassos and Oreinis – the jurisdiction to which the Saint Avvakoum Monastery belongs, to close shut down the establishment and communicate with the Holy Synod.

The Synod, in return, will most likely defrock said monks. The monks themselves have asked for the same to keep more scandal at bay.

The monks’ offenses also include exploitation of finances.

Specifically, they were instrumental in luring thousands claiming “miraculous” events, such as dripping of myrrh and tears coming from photos. The monks were actively promoting this via both social media and mainstream one. They even encouraged people to donate offering – which was found in a cumulating “stash” of valuable items and money – with a combined worth of one million Euros.

Furthermore, the monks each had bank accounts with huge balances, and even used some of the money to buy property in Cyprus and in Piraeus, to use as they saw fit.

A Syrian national who arrived to Cyprus with his 4 children on a migrant boat is burying one of them, who died in the boat from starvation.

According to Christos Andreou, a spokesperson for the Cyprus Police, the boat which left Syria in the middle of February used up its fuel tank and continued to sail on the seas with no destination in sight before ultimately being spotted by Cypriot Coast Guard.

The man said that he had wrapped his son in a blanket roughly 2 days before being found, only to be horrified once Cypriot authorities mentioned that the number of children found were not equal to the number declared.

It was then that he realized that his son had in fact died.

Three others could not be located and have been declared missing. Meanwhile two more are currently under Intensive care in the hospital.

Eleven minors on the boat, though, are safe and in good health.

The Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs is accusing Cyprus of actively supplying “weapons from Western nations” to Israel to use against Gaza.

This development, which is happening weeks after the island nation working as a home for UK’s military base and by extension “helping out” Israel to continue its “atrocities” on the Gaza Strip.

Minister Hakan Fidan spoke about Cyprus’ role in the war at the Organization of Islamic Countries (OIC), adding that Turkish Cyprus shall not support these endeavors and will aim to serve Gaza’s humanitarian needs.

Fidan continued to mention the UK’s increasing presence in Cyprus – chiefly the RAF Akrotiri, which serves as a collection-and-distribution point for delivering supplies to Israel.

Temperatures are set to rise in the week, along with some dust circulation.

According to the Cypriot Meteorological Office, temperatures are expected increase overall, standing at around 22 degrees Celsius in the mountainous regions, 29 degrees Celsius inland and 25 degrees Celsius in the coastal areas.

Temperatures post-sunset is set to stand at around 12 degrees Celsius in the mountainous regions and 16 degrees Celsius inland and in the coastal areas.

The week is expected to become progressively warm followed by temperatures reaching 36 degrees Celsius i.e. the seasonal average by the latter end of the week.

2 short movies have received accolades internationally.

According to the island nation’s Ministry of Culture, the movies – namely, Savvas Stavrou’s “Buffer Zone” and Constantinos Nikiforou’s “Taxi” have won big prizes on the global scale.

“Buffer Zone” is a tale of soldiers on opposite sides in Cyprus’ Buffer zone who find common ground via music. The film has already had several awards to its name, and won the Greek Film Festival’s Best Short Film prize – including a 500 Euros cash award.

On the other hand, “Taxi” is about a female cab driver who always talks to her customers about her spouse’s death – keeping them engaged in her conversations and of course, the story. It was featured in the Greek Film Festival held in San Francisco and also secured a seat in the comedic section of the European Independent Film Festival.

Cyprus’ Troodos Mountain ranges are buried under snow due to recent heavy snowfall.

In the central square, the depth of the snow measures to around 27 centimeters, making the landscape look like the clichéd Christmas snow-laden scene.

Contributing to the situation is “Dawn.” a low-pressure system consisting of both temporarily and partly cloudy skies that permeate all over the region.

The meteorological department predicts that the weather in the next few days would have the same type of weather, along with isolated rain showers and possible occurrence of a storm – especially in the mountainous and south-eastern regions. Mountains on a higher altitude might even see some snow.

A teenaged student from Agios Vasileios Gymnasium was stabbed by a knife in Strovolos.

Philenews reported that in the evening hours, the teenager who was stabbed came back home with his stab wound, and claimed it happened due to falling off of his bike.

However, his mother’s constant questioning led him to confess that it happened because of a time.

The mother admitted her son into the hospital almost immediately, where the attending doctor confirmed the fact.

The doctor added that while the injury is major, no important organ was affected.

The police are currently investigating the incident. They have already arrested another teenager and are questioning him and his parents.

Cyprus is all set to see the opening of two brand new golf-themed resorts in the next few years.

The resorts are part of the island nation’s latest investment efforts to bolster the economy, make jobs and get more visitors.

The Limassol Hills Golf Resort features among one of the projects. Designed by Cabell B. Robinson, the resort has over seven hundred and fifty villas, apartments and townhouses constructed near a golf course with eighteen holes and over six thousand four hundred square feet worth of area. The resort, which is being developed right now, will include other facilities, like a wellness center, a spa, stores, offices and several types of eateries.

Lanitis Golf Public Co (co-owned by the Maltese investor consortium and the Lanitis Group) is developing the property and announced that it will deliver the first golf course and residential properties in late-2024.

The second biggest project among these is the Eagle Pine Golf Resort. Located in Limassol and made by Aristo Developers, this Graham Marsh-designed resort shall also include an eighteen-hole golf course, along with flats, stores, offices, a premium hotel, a club house, golf instructor, spas and eateries. They are yet to announce when they shall open the establishment.

Right now, Cyprus has 4 golf resorts – Elea Estate, Minthis, Aphrodite Hills and Secret Valley.

The Government of Cyprus is prioritizing establishing an independent authority for food safety, to make sure that chain of control from farm to table gets supervised with utmost protection and health safety.

Said Authority will function to serve several purposes, including dealing with emergencies pertaining to food safety.

Currently, there are independent authorities for food safety in every EU country bar Cyprus. On a pan-European side, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) performs a similar function.

Keeping this in view, establishing a similar organization in Cyprus would be highly instrumental for its citizens.

In a bid to improve the safety levels in Cyprus, the Public Works Department of Cyprus has presented a study strongly suggesting reducing the current speed limit from 50 kilometers per hour to 30 kilometers per hour.

They are recommending the speed limit be applied to certain urban areas to begin, so that they can reduce pollution levels and lower accident numbers.

Specifically, the Public Works Department recommends the lowered speed limit be put into effect in Larnaca, Limassol and Nicosia. They plan to speak with Alexis Vafeades, the transport minister so that the Road Safety Council can take their suggestions into consideration.

This development in Cyprus is in line with similar initiatives being taken in European countries in their bid to reduce current speed limits.

Currently, the idea has support from the Cypriot Traffic Police.

Paphos police have arrested 3 people and subsequently broken up a group of thieves who had been robbing churches in Paphos.

The 3 people – each aged 16, 20 and 21 are all foreign nationals.

In the meantime, the police continue to search for another man, aged 44 – who is regarded as the operation’s brain.

According to the police, they have made successful links between them and fifteen other thefts and burglaries from a host of chapels and churches all over Paphos.

Stolen items include money and religious objects.

The rising number of booked Airbnbs – according to the startup itself, over 6700 accommodations with services and over thirty thousand ones with do-your-own-catering options have been booked so far.

According to Marios Tsianakas, the Tourism Ministry Officer, the island nation has seen a gradual increase in total rooms booked – and especially with self-catering options.

According to Tsianakas, this is a growing trend all across Europe – especially among the younger crowd who want to save on accommodation and maintain as much flexibility as possible.

Also, part of the trend are cheaper flights, which make for a more attractive package overall.

Tsianakas remarked that this has a positive effect overall, since the added flexibility allows travelers to spend on a variety of things, such as more travel, rental transportation and restaurant dining.

The Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment has reported a rise in the numbers of Mediterranean seals on the island nation.

According to Minister Maria Panayiotou, the total population of the mammals stands at around twenty-two. She spoke about this development at a workshop conducted at Peyia’s Cap St Georges resort.

Panayiotou remarked that the increase has taken place due to the successful execution of the species monitoring program. The program has led the population of these seals to increase from around ten to around twenty-two in a matter of ten years.

The Mediterranean seal is one of the most endangered animals – and the most endangered water mammal in Europe. There are currently seven hundreds of these – and around 400 of them live in and around Greece and Cyprus.

Sergio Mattarella, the Italian President has come to Cyprus on his two-day-long visit.

According to Konstantinos Letymbiotis, a spokesman for the Cypriot Government, the fact that Mattarella is visiting Cyprus is a very important cornerstone in fostering a better relationship between the two nations.

The presidential visit coincides with the island nation’s 20th year of joining the EU – and the sordid 50th year anniversary of Turkey’s invasion.

Accompanying President Mattarella will be other government representatives of Italy, as well as a delegation of people.

The President is due to reach Cyprus towards the afternoon and will visit the Presidential Palace and meet the Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides.

Their meeting will be succeeded by a meeting between the two nations’ delegations. Finally, statements summarizing the Then, Presidents Christodoulides and Mattarella will make statements.

The duo and their delegations shall then see the Nicosia City Hall and the old section of Nicosia.

President Mattarella will also speak with other Italians residing in Cyprus.

The visit will end with the Cypriot President and his wife hosting a dinner to honor his Italian counterparts.

The Cyprus Police in Limassol conducted four hundred and forty car checks, four hundred and seventy six person checks and two hundred and eleven DUIs – all in the span of four days.

Out of all of these checks, twenty-two were written down for driving while being drunk over the limit one hundred and seven were reported for committing traffic violations, sixteen were reported for other traffic-related issues, fifteen vehicles and four two-wheelers were seized.

Besides the above, 2 nightclubs were booked for code violations, 3 warrants to award fines were issued – one for possessing tobacco and the other two for illicit narcotics. A warrant – this time for arrest – was issued to a person living illegally in the island nation. Yet another warrant was issued for illegally keeping and transporting a weapon.

Charalambos Charilaou, the press officer for Cyprus’ health services (Okypy) has released a statement via the media on the rising number of people being hospitalized for the novel coronavirus.

Speaking with the Cyprus News Agency (CNA), which officially released the statement, Charilaou states how over seventy individuals suffering from the disease are being treated in hospitals. He further added 3 of these are in the ICU, though are not in immediate danger.

Most admitted individuals’ ages range 75 to 80 years – many of these are from nursing homes, which indicated a series of chain transmission of germs.

He also remarked on how most of the hospitalized were found to not be inoculated with the vaccine, which indicates that they could have caught the pathogen while meeting with others who were.

He urged the public to “continue to observe public hygiene measures”.