Cyprus Mail 14 August 2023 - by Jean Christou
Four people from an unmanned vessel spotted 35 nautical miles off Paphos, were taken ashore on Sunday, one being airlifted to the A&E at Paphos hospital due to a health condition, it emerged early on Monday.
According to the Cyprus News Agency, police said information was received on Sunday that a wooden boat about 10 metres long was spotted in the afternoon some 35 nautical miles southwest of Paphos and was unmanned and its occupants were in the water.
Marine police reached the area around. At around 7pm three of the passengers were safely transported to Kato Paphos, while for the fourth, who was reportedly suffering from a health problem, an air transport operation was set in motion.
Pafos Live
Four Syrians who were in danger of drowning when their boat suffered mechanical failure in international waters off Paphos have been rescued following an operation organised by the Search and Rescue Coordination Centre of the Republic of Cyprus.
The JRCC, implementing the national plan NEARCHOS, sent to the region sea and air assets of the Republic.
The authorities consider the Syrians' claims that they were traveling to Egypt strange to suspicious, given that they have already admitted that they arrived in the occupied areas through the illegal airport on a flight from Istanbul and after having travelled there by road from Syria.
