New migrant boat arrives in Cape Greco (update)

The coast guard on Thursday morning escorted a new boat of irregular migrants to the safety of the Golden Coast fishing shelter in Protaras.

The boat, which had set off from Syria, was spotted off-coast by authorities shortly before 2am and was carrying 17 people, of whom 13 were men, two were women and two minors. The rescue was reported as challenging due to rough sea conditions.

According to Famagusta police spokesman, Steve Theodoulou, at 1.40am the boat was detected by radar at a distance of eight nautical miles southeast of Cape Greco, moving towards the Cyprus coast.

The authorities approached the six-meter-long fiberglass vessel which had set off from Tartus, the second largest port city in Syria, on Wednesday night around 11pm.

The passengers admitted to having paid $3,000 to $3,500 each for the journey to boat’s two operators, aged 35 and 48, who were identified and arrested.

The operators are expected to appear before the Famagusta district court on Friday, while the rest of the passengers will be transferred to the Pournara reception center following procedures.