Body found after Syrian migrants arrive in Cyprus

Cyprus authorities Thursday located a man’s body at sea after a new group of Syrian migrants said a person went overboard as they arrived on the island by boat on the rocky northwestern Paphos coast.

Police said 44 Syrians – including two women and four children – were found wandering in the Peyia area after a boat was spotted departing Cyprus waters pre-dawn Thursday.

The migrants told police that a man on the boat had gone missing before reaching the shore.

A rescue operation was launched, and the body of a man was discovered in the water.

The Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Larnaca confirmed they located “an unconscious man” off the shore of Lara Beach in Paphos.

A police official said the body of a young man had been found after an extensive search using a helicopter, but the body has yet to be formally identified.

The missing migrant was said to be a 24-year-old Syrian.

After being processed, the migrants will be transferred to a reception centre outside the capital Nicosia.

Police believe the Syrians were smuggled from Turkey and dropped off before the boat departed.

Migrants leaving Turkey for the Cyprus coast has become a popular route for people smugglers in recent years and driven a huge rise in asylum seekers.

Nicosia has lobbied Brussels to take action over the “disproportionate” numbers of asylum seekers it receives, claiming Turkey has created a new Mediterranean route to the island.

Cyprus is the first European Union member to permanently host the European Asylum Support Office to help the Mediterranean island cope with a spike in migrants.

According to Eurostat data, Cyprus saw an annual jump of 636% in first-time asylum seekers in February compared to an average increase of 85% in the EU.

In Cyprus, 1805 new asylum applications were registered in February, compared to 245 new applications in February 2021 and 1385 (+30.3%) in January.