Priest and three others arrested in the north

Four Greek Cypriots, including a priest, who were arrested on Tuesday by Turkish Cypriot authorities for being in possession of a stone of archaeological importance, were released later in the day.

The four men were arrested near the Pergamos checkpoint at around 3pm.

Police told the Cyprus Mail that the men where arrested by the Turkish Cypriot authorities during a car inspection, when a stone with the symbol of a cross etched on it was recognised as an object of valuable archaeological importance and its transfer to “Greek Cypriot territory” was prohibited.

The priest had told the Turkish Cypriot police that he had taken the stone from his village of Vokolida, now in the occupied areas.

According to the foreign ministry spokesperson Demetris Samuel, the four men were released later on Tuesday by the Turkish Cypriot authorities, adding that the ministry had immediately contacted Unficyp requesting for their mediation to end the illegal detention of the men.

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.