The Commemoration of victims of the Turkish Invasion
Cyprus has commemorated a sad event in its history. During the night between 20th and 21st of July 1974, Turkish troops attacked the residents of the island. In order to commemorate those victims, the airstrike alarm was turned on at 05:30 am. The commemorative services were then conducted in the churches across the island.
40% of the Cyprus’ territory remain occupied for 42 years. More than 200,000 people were forced to leave their homes. Turkish government announced the establishment of the TRNC, which remain un recognized by all countries of he world, except Turkey itself. Moreover, the international community calls for the reunification of the island.
This week, the Greek government demanded from Turkey to withdraw their troops from the island. The UN also insists of the swiftest possible resolution of the problem. The leaders of both sides- Nicos Anastasiades and Mustafa Akinchi are conducting frequent negotiation sessions. They also met during the week, however it is still to early to talk about any significant breakthroughs in the resolution of the problem.
The State of Emergency in Turkey: The failed Putsch
One of the most discussed topics of the week was the situation in Turkey and the consequences of the failed Putsch. According to the officials, no Cypriot citizens were injured during the uprising. However, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Cyprus recommends to individuals, who were planning a trip to Turkey, to postpone the trip. The Turkish government has announced the State of National Emergency.
The Turkish Special Forces are conducting arrests of the participants of the Putsch. Several thousand individuals, including high position military officers, were arrested. Erdogan blamed his opponent Fethullah Gulen, who is currently living in the USA, for organization of the uprising. Gulen declines all of the allegations and he has stated that all the events were organized by Erdogan himself in order to strengthen his power and to oust the unwanted individuals.
The restoration of the forests is underway
The restoration of the forests in Cyprus has commenced. It has been announced that cedars, pines and Cypresses will be planted on the damaged areas. The Forestry department will arrange for the necessary amount of seeds from the special reserves.
In June, the forests were damaged by fiercest fire in history, which destroyed more than 20 sq.km of forests and fruit gardens. The fire was extinguished only after a number of countries has sent their resources to combat the fire. During the operation, two firemen died.
Cyprus sets new record in the number of tourists visiting the island!
In June the number of tourists coming to Cyprus increased by 23% and overall there were more than 400,000 visitors in one month. Mostly, the tourists are coming either from Britain or Russia – Cyprus is especially popular in those markets as holiday destination.
The hotels are almost full and it is almost impossible to find a room during these days. The tourists are not even scared away by the prices which went up- the tour operators are taking advantage of the situation in order to increase their profits.
Free Wi-Fi and lockers! Beaches in Ayia-Napa are trying to attract more tourists.
The free Wi-Fi coverage was installed on the beaches of Ayia-Napa, as per the decision of the municipality of the town.
According to the mayor of the town, beaches are an important source of income for the town and the more tourists there are, the more revenue the town gets. Therefore the authorities decided to make the town more attractive by improving the quality and number of the offered services.
Another important implementation are the lockers, where valuables can be stored. By the way, the temperature of the sea has reached +29 in certain areas.
The “Russian Radio Cup” mini-football tournament in Limassol
The first “Russian Radio Cup” mini-football tournament has finished in Limassol. The participants of the tournament were the 4 teams from the Russian Speaking Amateur Football league, including the reigning champion – team GEO.
However, right in the first match, the new-comer of the league – the “Cyprus Inform” has won the match with the score 3:2 against GEO. Quite frankly, the team “Cyprus Inform” deserves the title of the best new team – they managed to get up to the second place in the tournament. The cup itself went to the team Besarabia.
