Cyprus tourist arrivals dipped 76.9% reaching 100,791 in October 2020 from 436,509 in the same month of 2019, due to pandemic travel restrictions, official data showed Tuesday. For the first 10 months to October 2020, tourist arrivals totalled 612,975 compared to 3,697,055 last year, recording a bigger decrease of 83.4%. In March, a ban of
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A requirement for workers exempted from the lockdown travel ban in Limassol and Paphos to carry a negative coronavirus test was postponed for a day until Thursday following chaotic scenes at testing centres. The 24-hour delay comes amid public anger over the way the government has handled the second wave of COVID-19, and the measures
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Israel’s combat aircraft F-35s will fly over Cyprus during a three-day joint military exercise with the Republic’s armed forces taking place in Limassol and Paphos between 17 -19 November. It is said to be the first time that Israel will deploy its fifth-generation stealth fighter jets in a joint exercise with Cyprus. This is an
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Cyprus scientists are encouraged by the latest discovery of a COVID-19 vaccine having an efficiency rate of 94.5%, the highest so far in immunity against the virus. Pharmaceutical Moderna pioneering in messenger RNA Therapeutics, announced it has produced a highly effective vaccine. Another positive factor is the claim it can be stored at less extreme
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Twenty-one US congress members have urged US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo hold Turkey accountable for opening fenced-off Varosha and condemn its President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for supporting a two-state solution for Cyprus. Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY), co-chair and co-founder of the Congressional Caucus on Hellenic Issues, and Congressman Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), co-chair of
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Cyprus MPs need to adopt a code of conduct to prevent corruption by addressing conflict of interests and lobbying influence, the Council of Europe’s Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) report said. It also recommended – in light of the golden passports scandal – that MPs’ asset declaration should be more comprehensive while control over
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President Nicos Anastasiades believes Cypriots will soon be paying less for electricity once the market opens up and Cyprus’ natural gas resources start flowing to the LNG terminal being built. Anastasiades expressed his expectations on Monday when receiving the annual report of the Electricity Authority of Cyprus (EAC) for 2019, from its chairman Michalis Komodromos.
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Cyprus health authorities announced 107 new cases of SARS-CoV-2 on Monday, the third day with a steady drop in new infections following the 207 on Friday. However, this number is expected to rise again after the government embarked on an antigen-based rapid testing programme, focusing on the districts of Limassol and Paphos that have seen
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Interior Minister Nicos Nouris told MPs Monday there was not a chance of the government resurrecting the disgraced passport for investment scheme. He said the Cyprus Investment Programme has been terminated once and for all, there was no going back after the scandals it raised. Nouris was speaking before the parliamentary committee on financial and
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Cyprus Justice Minister Emily Yiolitis criticised protests against COVID-19 measures after a Limassol demonstration against the lockdown turned ugly. Yiolitis told state broadcaster CyBC on Monday that demonstrations in Limassol are prohibited under decrees issued by the Health Ministry. “This is not the time for us to be gathering on the streets. The streets carry
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