Police arrest suspected illegal immigrants

FOURTEEN Syrian immigrants suspected of trying to enter the country illegally were intercepted off the coast of Protaras yesterday morning by Famagusta police.

Their boat was seen on radar two and a half nautical miles off the coast.

They were picked up and taken to the local police station.

Investigations revealed the immigrants had paid up to £1,000 each to the captain of the ship who sailed from Beirut and then dropped them off in a small boat off the coast of Protaras.

Famagusta Chief of Police Savvas Chailis said the case was under investigation and a decision would be taken as to whether they would face charges in court or be sent back to Lebanon.

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.