Army camps may be used to house irregular migrants

The government may begin sending migrants to army camps across Nicosia if arrivals do not slow down, it emerged on Thursday.

Currently, over 1,300 people are at Pournara reception centre with authorities fearing that if more migrants arrive, the space in the facility may become too tight.

In the past week, 739 migrants arrived in the span of 50 hours in boats arriving from Lebanon.

Though the government is not yet at the stage to take the migrants to army camps, the idea has been floated, reports said.

The surge in arrivals from Lebanon has irked Cypriot authorities who have conveyed a message to Lebanon, as the two have an agreement to stop migrants reaching the island’s shores.

Earlier this week, the National Security Council held a snap meeting with President Nikos Christodoulides saying “I fully understand the challenges Lebanon is facing, but exporting migrants to Cyprus should not be the answer and cannot be accepted. To that end, the EU should also stand by Cyprus in tangible ways.”

House president Annita Demetriou was also meeting with the Lebanese ambassador to Cyprus on Thursday.