Similar conditions to those that led to violence in Oroklini now exist in an apartment building in Pyla, MPs warned during a House Interior Committee meeting.
State officials acknowledged problems with residents in the Pyla building, as lawmakers urged authorities to take preventive action before the situation deteriorates.
The warning came during discussions about last Saturday’s attack by masked thugs against migrants in a violent illegal eviction attempt, which left one person seriously injured.
Committee members highlighted the lack of coordination between government services that allowed non-state actors to operate in the case of six apartment buildings in Oroklini.
Representatives from various agencies each focused on their specific responsibilities during the hearing, revealing a complete lack of communication that committee members suggested made the incidents almost inevitable.
DISY MP Nikos Georgiou, who registered the topic for discussion, noted that problems had been emerging since 2017 without a coordinated response from authorities.
The deputy mayor of Oroklini detailed his unsuccessful attempts to alert relevant services to the situation, as previously reported by Philenews.
While periodic measures were taken, the issue only gained serious attention when the six apartment buildings were sold and the new owner sought to evict residents to renovate the properties.
Police claimed they could not execute an eviction order because the Law Office ruled it invalid as it was issued by the district officer rather than a court.
However, committee chairman Aristos Damianou and other MPs pointed out that the Law Office took a different stance in Chloraka, allowing foreign tenants to be removed from the building where they resided.
The state had been sending rent payments for foreigners living in a building without a final approval certificate until 2022, when payments officially stopped. MPs suggested money continued to flow through alternative channels, with foreigners declaring different addresses after the 57 apartments were excluded from receiving subsidies.
At various points, authorities counted 75 foreigners in the referenced apartments, of whom 71 had legal status, while at another stage 100 people were recorded.
The committee will continue its discussion of the issue.
What happened in Oroklini?
On Saturday, 5 April 2025, a violent confrontation unfolded at an apartment complex in Oroklini, near Larnaca, during an attempted eviction of third-country nationals residing there. The situation escalated, resulting in serious injuries, including a critical head injury to a 27-year-old foreign man and the hospitalisation of a two-month-old baby.
Initial reports of masked individuals potentially carrying weapons were later clarified by police, who stated the individuals involved were wearing surgical masks, the reason for which is under investigation. Law enforcement intervened, reportedly using tear gas to quell the disturbance after officers were allegedly pelted with stones by the migrants.
In the aftermath of the incident, eight individuals have been arrested, comprising four Cypriots and four foreign nationals, with repatriation processes initiated for three of the latter.
A 35-year-old Cypriot man, suspected of coordinating the eviction attempt, is currently in custody, while three other Cypriot individuals were questioned and subsequently released pending further investigation.
The apartment complex where the incident occurred was reportedly in poor condition, and the events followed prior notification by the new owners to local authorities regarding their intention to redevelop the site and remove the residents.
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