Tel Aviv [Israel] September 23 (ANI/TPS): The Minister of Interior of the Republic of Cyprus, Konstantinos Ioannou, clarified today that the government will not back down on its decision to activate legislation requiring municipalities to remove hate-inciting graffiti from public view.
This issue arose after the Minister sent a letter to Andreas Vyras, the President of the Union of Municipalities of Cyprus, also attaching a letter from the Israeli Minister of Diaspora Affairs Amichai Chikli. In his letter, the Israeli Minister drew the attention of the Cypriot government to hateful slogans and slurs against Israel and Israelis in various parts of Cyprus.
These included references such as “F*** Israel” and “F*** Israeli investors.”
The Cypriot government has made clear that it will not tolerate antisemitic rhetoric and actions, which, according to Cypriot law, are criminal offences. Vyras, who belongs to the opposition communist party AKEL, responded by stating that the Union of Municipalities “does not endorse interventions from foreign states.
“AKEL also escalated the Interior Minister’s indications into a major political issue, issuing two statements. The first, entitled “Is Netanyahu’s Regime Ruling the Country?”, provoked a swift response from both the government and Cyprus’s largest party, the conservative Democratic Rally (DISY), which is also part of the opposition.
Both strongly rejected the references and condemned the statement. “If the letter that AKEL is referring to today had come from the Palestinian side with slogans directed against them, would the party have issued a statement? Would it have reacted with the same sensitivity?” asked DISY.
AKEL responded with a second, fuming statement entitled “What Do You Owe the Fascist Murderer Netanyahu?”The government and DISY again condemned the communist party’s slurs, with DISY accusing AKEL of offering nothing to the country. “On the contrary,” said the party, “it exposes our homeland and undermines the Republic of Cyprus’s efforts to maintain its role as a reliable and responsible force in the region and in Europe.”
AKEL has always maintained a hostile stance towards Israel. However, during its own term in office (2008-2013), efforts to cooperate in the energy sector and elsewhere were intensified, and its anti-Israeli rhetoric was reduced to a minimum.
Last June, Abdallah Attari, the Palestinian Authority representative in Cyprus, was invited to an AKEL party conference–an unprecedented move from a party and an unprecedented attendance by a member of the diplomatic corps. There, AKEL Secretary General Stefanos Stefanou launched a tirade against the government and Israel, even repeating the antisemitic conspiracy theory of the “Second Zion” and claiming that Israel is buying up Cyprus with the aim of controlling it.
The incident enraged the Cypriot government. According to information obtained and verified by TPS-IL, the government warned Attari that his whole behaviour was highly unbefitting of his diplomatic status. Cyprus has recognised a Palestinian State since 1988. Attari is known for causing scenes and verbally attacking Israeli embassy staff, as well as Cypriot journalists who do not share his views.
Cyprus is in the early stages of an election campaign ahead of crucial parliamentary elections that will shape the political balance.AKEL, which has been experiencing dramatic declines in its poll ratings, has made the Palestinian issue the main focus of its political agenda.According to recent reports in the Cypriot press, it has now managed to halt its losses and even record a marginal increase. (ANI/TPS)
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