Cyprus and Israel

[whitecoast]

From PressTV.ir. I’ve seen this playbook before. The Cypriots better watch their backs.

Concerns grow in Cyprus over purchase of real estate by fleeing Israeli settlers

Concerns grown in Cyprus over an increasing wave of immigration by Israelis to the island country, where they are buying real estate and settling in strategic areas.

www.presstv.ir

Concerns have grown in Cyprus over an increasing wave of immigration by Israeli settlers to the island country, where they are buying real estate and settling in strategic areas.

At a recent congress of AKEL, Cyprus’s second-largest party, Secretary General Stefanos Stefanou said the Israelis’ buying of land near critical infrastructure and sensitive areas poses a serious national threat.

He also warned of “ghettos” forming in Cyprus due to property sales to Israeli settlers, citing “Zionist schools and synagogues” as part of an expansion strategy.

“They are taking the country away from us,” he said, warning that the influx of Israeli buyers mirrors patterns seen in the occupied Palestinian territories.

Stephanou described the purchases as part of a “broad plan” that could lead to the establishment of settlements, religious institutions, and increased Israeli economic control.

He further criticized the Cypriot government for failing to address the issue and called for stricter regulations on foreign real estate transactions in the country.

Similarly, Cypriot analysts warned that continued real estate purchases by Israelis could pose a threat to Cyprus’s sovereignty in the future and lead to economic fallout.

However, Israeli Ambassador to Cyprus Oren Anolik condemned the emergence of what he called “antisemitic rhetoric” in Cyprus’s public discourse.

In response, Stefanou defended his party’s stance, emphasizing that criticism of Israeli policies is not antisemitism.

“Israel tolerates no criticism and wants to control everything,” Stefanou said, noting that the usurping regime has labelled the UN chief antisemitic for slamming the ongoing genocidal war on Gaza.

Official figures estimate that around 2,500 Israelis live permanently in Cyprus, but some experts believe the real number could be between 12,000 and 15,000 due to entry using European passports.

 

[Breo]

There might be many "little Israels" ahead in many countries in the world. "Exodus, exile, diaspora", as they call it, this repeats since millennia.

 

[Alana]

It's been happening for a while now. There were reports even 10 years ago about Israelis buying land in the occupied Cyprus and setting up businesses there, which is illegal, but Brits have been doing it for a while too, via loopholes, and taking advantage of the fact that the occupied part is not a recognized political entity, so everything goes.

A lawyer and activist, Dimitri Lascaris, made a report about the influx of Israelis on the island last year. Note that the population of the island is barely a million:

This article from Oct. 2024 gives a brief summary of his report:

A sharp rise in Israeli settlers' migration to Cyprus has sparked concerns, with many seeking to purchase properties, including home and land, as settlers are leaving the occupied territories en masse amid fallout of Israel's wars on Gaza and Lebanon.

Dimitri Lascaris, an activist journalist, in his recent report revealed a considerable surge of Israelis traveling to Cyprus Island to “buy anything in sight” following the recent war in Gaza, and the escalating crisis in the region.

“What I found were secretive, luxurious resorts that cater to and pamper affluent Israelis” while Tel Aviv “inflicts a genocide on the Palestinian people,” said Lascaris in his report.

Lascaris highlighted that the connection between Zionism and Cyprus dates back nearly to the inception of the Zionist movement. At the Third Zionist Congress in 1899, David Trietsch presented the notion that the Jewish state envisioned by Theodor Herzl could first be established in Cyprus.

“Jews shouldn’t seek refuge in lands favorable for European settlement, as they would encounter resistance in every such country. They also won’t be able to efficiently settle in tropical regions. Given these conditions, Cyprus is the most suitable location for Jewish settlement. While the island isn’t a magnet for European settlers, its climate is suitable for Europeans, and notably, it is in close proximity to Israel, serving as a gateway to it,” Trietsch said.

Though the proposal for the establishment of a Jewish state in Cyprus was officially removed from the Zionist agenda, Herzl did not forget it. "We would gather on the island, and one day travel to the Land of Israel and reclaim it by force, just as it was taken from us," Herzel had said.

In 2018, the Jewish population of Cyprus was estimated at around 6,500, however in April 2024, the number was significantly increased, according to Israel's KAN public news channel indicating that the Israeli community alone has reached 12,000.

The current monthly growth rate is around 250 to 300 individuals, meaning more than 3,000 Israelis annually relocate to Cyprus.

The report outlines three distinct waves of Israeli migration to the island: the first during the COVID pandemic, the second triggered by political turmoil in Israel related to so-called judicial reforms in 2023, and the third occurring in late 2023 to early 2024 in the aftermath of Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza.

Silent Occupation

The significance of this issue stems from several key factors, notably Cyprus’s geopolitical context, its proximity to the occupied territories and its membership in NATO. Additionally, the recent discovery of gas reserves has further enhanced the region's value, underscoring its importance on the global stage.

Another important issue is that a significant UK military base, which plays a crucial role in supporting Israel's genocide, is situated on the island of Cyprus. According to Lascaris' report, numerous warplanes and aircraft destined for attacks on Palestinians have been launched from the Akrotiri airbase.

Analysts use the term “silent occupation” since under the country’s laws, foreign firms can only purchase up to 500 square meters. However, if a company is at least 51 percent owned by Turkish Cypriot citizens, it can bypass this limit and acquire larger tracts of land.

This loophole has allowed Jewish companies to amass thousands of acres, as they register as Northern Cyprus entities, obscuring their Israeli identity and complicating the government's ability to track the extent of Israeli land acquisitions.

The high cost of living in Israel, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s so-called judicial reform law and the Israeli war on Gaza since October last year are considered to be the main reason of immigration from the occupied lands.

In a recent report by the Hebrew-language Maariv newspaper, the first seven months of the current year witnessed the immigration of 40,000 settlers, equivalent to three times the immigration rates before the brutal aggression, as 2,000 more people immigrate monthly compare to previous years.