In a statement from the ministry, the implementation of a new policy in relation to the management of Syrian asylum seekers, and due to their recent mass arrival by sea, the examination of asylum applications is suspended in all cases of people of Syrian origin.
“This is an emergency measure, it’s a difficult decision to protect the interests of Cyprus,” Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides told reporters on Sunday.
Cyprus, the EU’s easternmost state and the closest to the Middle East, lies about 160km (100 miles) west of the shores of Lebanon or Syria.
It recorded more than 2,000 arrivals by sea in the first three months this year, compared with just 78 over the same period in 2023.