UN peacekeeper was subjected to physical assault while attempting to halt the “unauthorised” construction of a road through the buffer zone between the villages of Pyla and Arsos by Turkish Cypriot authorities. The incident occurred as a confrontation escalated between UN peacekeepers and personnel from the Turkish Cypriot side, resulting in minor injuries to three peacekeepers. The nationalities of the injured peacekeepers are pending confirmation; however, the Pyla region falls under the jurisdiction of the Slovak contingent responsible for the UN’s “Sector 4”.
Reports indicate that a total of 12 UN peacekeepers were forcefully pushed back from their positions in the buffer zone, allegedly by Turkish Cypriot military and police personnel dressed in plain clothes. The incident saw the use of tractors to clear UN vehicles blocking access to the road, and some vehicles were rammed off the road. As a consequence, three UN vehicles are now inoperable, suffering damage to their chassis.
Sources familiar with the situation have reported that the Turkish Cypriot personnel involved were military and police personnel who have previously engaged in similar altercations with UN personnel. The confrontation reportedly involved 12 to 24 Turkish Cypriot personnel, outnumbering the stationed UN peacekeepers.
In response to the incident, the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (Unficyp) issued a statement strongly condemning the assaults against UN peacekeepers and the damage inflicted on UN vehicles. The statement labelled such actions as “unacceptable” and indicated that they constitute a “serious crime under international law.” Unficyp urged the Turkish Cypriot side to respect the mission’s mandated authority within the UN buffer zone, cease actions that could escalate tensions, and promptly withdraw personnel and equipment from the buffer zone.
The situation has garnered international attention, with the French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna reportedly engaging in a telephone call with her Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan regarding the matter.
The dispute erupted after the north’s “foreign ministry” announced plans to make “improvements” to the road, raising concerns from Unficyp about unauthorised actions in the buffer zone. UN officials have called for negotiation efforts before any construction takes place. Responding to the situation, government spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis criticized the plans as an attempt to establish new settlements within the buffer zone through illegal actions.
