The United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (Unficyp) condemned assaults against UN peacekeepers and damage to UN vehicles by personnel from the Turkish Cypriot side early on Friday.
The incident took place inside the buffer zone near Pyla as UN peacekeepers blocked unauthorised construction work in the area, Unficyp said.
“Threats to the safety of UN peacekeepers and damage to UN property are unacceptable and constitute a serious crime under international law which will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law,” an announcement said.
Unficyp called on the Turkish Cypriot side to “respect the mission’s mandated authority inside the UN buffer zone, refrain from any actions that could escalate tensions further and to withdraw all personnel and machinery from the UN buffer zone immediately”.
The mission said it was monitoring the situation closely and remains committed to ensuring calm and stability are maintained in the area.
The north’s ‘foreign ministry’ announced on Thursday its intention to carry out “improvements” to the road and open it to the public. Currently, the only way to drive between the two villages is to drive through the British base in Dhekelia and the village of Pergamos.
Following this announcement, Unficyp said it was “concerned” by the plans and labelled them as “unauthorised”. They also called on the Turkish Cypriot authorities to “continue [NEGOTIATION] efforts before construction work commences”.
In his own statement, government spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis condemned the plans, saying they are “attempting to create new settlements within the dead zone by planning an illegal entry into the area”.
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