Tourists beaten in Limassol riots to be offered free accommodation

The tourists of Arab origin who were attacked during the anti-migrant riot in Limassol on Friday will be offered free accommodation for their next trip to Cyprus.

The move was confirmed by tourism deputy minister Kostas Koumis, who told newspaper Kathimerini the deputy ministry has been “investigating the matter” and that it is in contact with the ambassador of their country of origin.

“The deputy ministry’s intention is to offer the people in question to enjoy their holidays again. We will invite them to Cyprus and host them,” he said.

He added that he had “not received any concern” in his contacts with Arab markets since Friday, and said the Arab market was one which Cyprus is attempting to tap into.

He said he was “worried about the culture” which produced Friday’s violence and admitted “there has been an upsurge of violence in Cyprus for years”, which has been seen in various forms and not limited to anti-migrant attacks.

“However, Cyprus is and remains a safe destination and these incidents are isolated,” he said.

Cyprus has received a demarche from an Arabian Gulf nation, after it emerged that far-right protestors attacked a tourist from their country, the permanent secretary of the foreign affairs ministry Kyriakos Kouros said on Sunday.

Kouros did not reveal the country that had sent the demarche, after the tourist returned in a wheelchair, but an earlier report in Cyprus Mail listed one Kuwaiti tourist among the injured in the violent attacks from far-right protestors.