Two soldiers attacked outside army camp

TWO NATIONAL Guard (NG) conscripts were treated at Nicosia General Hospital on Tuesday night, after being attacked by three men outside their camp.

According to the police, the three men were in a car driving from the buffer-zone towards a military camp in Nicosia when the two conscripts motioned them to stop. Screeching to a halt, the three men got out and proceeded to attack the two soldiers.

The two assault victims were taken to Nicosia hospital, where one was treated for minor injuries on his face and discharged. The other conscript was kept in for precautionary reasons, after complaining of acute abdominal pains.

A few hours after the attack, police tracked down the car’s owner – a 28-year-old man from Nicosia – who was arrested along with another two men, aged 29 and 34, and taken to Pera Chorio Police Station for questioning.

The three men were kept in custody until late last night. A police spokesman yesterday said the case would be presented to the Attorney-general today, as it involves the NG. It was not clear if the suspects were charged or not.

According to an announcement by the Defence Ministry yesterday, the incident took place at a little after 7.30 pm. “Three civilians illegally entered the guard post and struck two conscripts, who approached them to specify the reason for their presence there,” it said.

“Immediately after the incident, the civilians got in their car and fled the scene at breakneck speed. The case was reported to the police, who arrested the civilians late (on Tuesday) night,” it added.

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