Two due in court after explosion near Israeli embassy

Two of four young men, reportedly Syrian, arrested in connection with a small explosion near the Israeli embassy in the capital are due to appear in Nicosia court on Friday.

The other two of the four, all aged between 17 and 21, who were arrested at the time of the explosion on Saturday were released on the advice of the legal service due to lack of evidence tying them to the incident, reports said.

On Saturday, an explosion occurred at 1.37am near the embassy in Strovolos. A small piece of metal was found about 30m away from the embassy which had a small amount of pyrotechnic material that had exploded but did not cause any damage.

Two people were seen walking suspiciously in the area while a car was spotted nearby with two others inside. In the car police found two knives and a hammer, as a result of which its 21-year-old owner was arrested for possessing a weapon.

All four suspects were remanded for six days.

Prior to the remand expiring on Friday, reports said that the legal service decided to pursue charges against the two who were seen walking near the embassy while the two in the car were to be released.

All four deny the accusation but police have said none had managed to explain their presence in the vicinity of the embassy at a time when tensions were rising over the Israel-Gaza conflict.

The two suspects that will appear in court face charges of attempted destruction of property with explosives, possession and use of explosives and carrying a knife.

According to reports, authorities are also waiting for answers from scientific tests on various items that were found in the possession of the four at the time of their arrest. These included a hammer and two knives for which they also had no explanation, police said.