Cyprus prepared for increased numbers from Israel

Cyprus is preparing for further increases in arrivals from Israel Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos said on Wednesday, as the crisis between the country and Gaza continues.

Speaking at a press conference with Defence Minister Michalis Giorgallas on the Estia evacuation plan, Kombos said that 1,083 people had been evacuated so far on 15 flights and two ships.

Out of those people, a total of 871 have already departed for their next destinations, while 182 have chosen to temporarily stay. Kombos said that the requests to stay are increasing daily.

Kombos said that there are also 14 foreign missions at the Zenon coordination centre, cooperating with the government authorities, in the case the situation worsens.

“The numbers [of arrivals] could increase if the crisis continues,” Kombos said, adding that diplomacy is necessary to de-escalate the situation.

He reiterated the condemnation of the Hamas surprise attacks on October 7, which sparked the crisis, while he also condemned Tuesday’s strike on a hospital in Gaza – with both sides blaming each other.

“Humanitarian aid must increase,” he said.

Referring to the Estia plan, he said that it was activated on October 10 and that coordinating meetings with the cooperating ministries and services preceded and followed its activation.

“There is a serious possibility these numbers, which are very significant, in the event that we have an extension of the crisis, will be much larger,” said the minister. He recalled that in the case of the evacuations from Sudan, a total of 2,611 people arrived in Cyprus.

He said that they are in constant contact with the relevant ministries of defence, interior, justice, health and transport, which he thanked and the various services that fall under them.

“We await the developments as they proceed in the coming hours and days and we will adjust our planning according to how the data changes at any given moment,” he added.

The defence minister said that they are working with the all the government authorities to coordinate the Estia plan, to welcome foreign nationals.

He stated that his ministry is in cooperation with the other competent agencies and ministries “in order to do our best”, facilitating foreign nationals who are currently fleeing from the area of hostilities.

He also added that the numbers of arrivals could increase as the crisis continues in the Middle East.

A foreign ministry source told the Cyprus Mail that Cyprus has the capability to welcome and temporarily host more individuals if the numbers increase, with some people already being hosted at military bases.