Turkish soldier hurt in mystery shooting

MYSTERY surrounds a Green Line shooting incident in which a Turkish soldier needed hospital treatment on Sunday night.

The National Guard reported a shooting incident near the Nicosia race track in Ayios Dhometios, after which screams were heard.

Soldiers on the line said they saw a Turkish officer and eight troops take away someone in a military vehicle.

“We were told by the National Guard of the incident but by the time peacekeepers arrived at the scene to see if there was a problem the soldier was taken away in an ambulance,” UN spokeswoman Sarah Russell told the Cyprus Mailyesterday.

Although there has been no statement from the north regarding the incident, the Turkish Cypriot press has reported a soldier receiving hospital treatment following the shooting. He is said to be in a serious condition.

Two months ago a soldier attempted suicide at a Turkish sentry post by shooting himself. The incident happened in the same area as Sunday’s shooting.

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.