A boat filled with 130 refugees capsized off the north-east coast of Cyprus on Wednesday. Cyprus’ Joint Rescue Coordination Center (JRCC) sent forces to tow the boat to the Latchi harbor in Paphos, including a helicopter that was used to locate the boat. The refugees became stranded after the engine of the boat reportedly failed. The boat was located at noon, 9 nautical miles off the north-east coast of Cyprus.
The Cypriot State broadcaster CyBC reported that a number of refugees on board were of Syrian origin. There were thirty children on the boat. They had contacted family members to inform them of the problem they had run into while they were at sea.
Polis Mayor Angelos Georgiou expressed his concern regarding the situation. In September, the Cypriot police had picked up 47 refugees in the same area, which included 11 children and 10 women who managed to climb the rocky, steep shore. Last month, rescue services picked up another boat with 84 Syrian refugees drifting off Kato Pyrgos.
Cypriot patrols are continuing off the northwest coast of Cyprus due to an increase in migrant arrivals in the area this year. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees spokesman, William Spindler, wrote on Twitter that at least 3,800 people have died in the region, making 2016 the deadliest ever.
Conflict at Kofinou Migrant Facility
A protest was staged at the Kofinou migrant facility on Cyprus to demonstrate unequal treatment of those inside. The protestors, a total of 37 men women and children, called on locals to show solidarity for their cause and criticized the state’s handling of their asylum applications. They stated that despite arriving on the same boat from the same country of origin at the same time, there were some applicants who got their applications approved while others in the same condition were rejected.
They stated that they would remain outside the facility until their asylum applications are approved. On its part, the Cypriot Migration Department said it examines each case individually, however, authorities have been criticized for weighing some negative factors more heavily than others.
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