Syria opens service with Northern Cyprus

Syria has ended Northern Cyprus's international isolation by entering a ferry service agreement, the government of Northern Cyprus reports. After a promotional voyage at the weekend between Famagusta in Northern Cyprus and and Latakia in Syria, there will now be regular services on the three-hour route. Turgay Avcý, foreign minister of Northern Cyprus, said that the service had come about after a series of official contacts between Northern Cyprus and Syria. He thanked the head of the Syrian Navigation Chamber, Abdulkadir Sabýra, who he said had played an important role. Over 28 years have passed since the last ferry service between Northern Cyprus and a country other than Turkey. The ports of Famagusta, Karavostasi and Kyrenia in Northern Cyprus were declared closed by the South in 1974 on the grounds that the South could not guarantee safety in zones occupied by Turkish troops. The master or the owner of a ship that uses the ports in Northern Cyprus is liable to arrest, detention, imprisonment and fines in the Southern part of the island. Any ships registered in the Cypriot register that call at the North are liable for deletion.