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| Courtesy Cyprus Mail |
Seems that the threat of electricity cuts resulting from lack of Turkish oil for generators is over, unsurprisingly. Have not pursued the intricacies of supposed criminal connections but the ship. Yeni Yuzyil (pictured), which has been lying off the coast near Girne, will be permitted to unload its oil. As “it was found that its links to an alleged organised crime ring were more tenuous than first believed”. Not that shipping oil to Israel appears to have bothered official Turkish consciences any.
Meanwhile it seems that not all smuggling between North and South is one way. There have been a number of cases of bringing meat illegally from the South as well as instances of bringing expensive manufactured goods across. However, a man was arrested in Larnaca and charged with possessing 83 boxes of 200 cigarettes each, acquired in the North and destined to accompany him to Britain. The cigarettes were illegal in the first place as they had not been marked as taxed. And there would have been difficulties at the other end as it is only legal to take 200 cigarettes in to the UK (or 50 cigars for those who prefer), leaving an embarrassing excess of 16,400 smokes for the bloke to explain at customs on landing. However, the Larnaca police relieved him of his burden, allowed him to make what they termed an out of court settlement of €7000, and destroyed the cigarettes - or said they did.