One of five men charged over an alleged Hamas plan to attack Israeli interests in Cyprus will be tried separately and is expected to testify for the prosecution against the other four. Prosecutors suspended the charges against him at the Criminal Court in Larnaca on Wednesday.
The 33-year-old allegedly confessed and said he intended to testify against his co-accused. The charges against him were suspended before proceedings began. He was again referred directly for trial before the Criminal Court, which will sit on October 26.
The five, who are Palestinians, are accused of conspiring in 2026 to provide support to Hamas, which allegedly gave them a specific mission linked to terrorist attacks on Israeli interests in Cyprus. All are alleged to be members of a well-organised network that recruited Palestinians to carry out terrorist attacks, with its cells trained in Malaysia.
The men, aged 32, 33, 38, 41 and 54, had been due to say on Wednesday whether they plead guilty. The hearing for the remaining four was adjourned after some of their lawyers asked for additional evidence.
The 54-year-old, a Cypriot citizen, again objected to his detention, and the court reserved its decision until October 16. When he was first referred for trial, he was released on bail of 1 million euros, but the Court of Appeal overturned that decision.
Alleged roles
The 41-year-old, who lived in Indonesia and was arrested in July when he was deported to Cyprus, is alleged to have headed the network in Cyprus. He appears to have lived in Malaysia at first, giving instructions to the other members from there.
Most of those instructions appear to have been carried out by the 33-year-old, who is alleged to have been the organisation’s key figure in Cyprus. He has been linked to three properties in the Limassol and Larnaca districts. Large quantities of dangerous substances and equipment for making explosives were found at a house in Pentakomo and a flat in Kamares. Packages of materials for making explosives were found to have been sent to a house in Kolossi.
In his alleged confession, he said the 41-year-old recruited him and paid him a monthly salary. He said he met the 41-year-old on trips to Malaysia and on one trip to Istanbul to receive instructions, and was ordered to photograph various locations in Cyprus.
According to the alleged confession, once he had gathered enough materials in Cyprus, the 38-year-old, a physics teacher, travelled from Malaysia in May via the occupied north. The 38-year-old, who was living at the house in Pentakomo, is alleged to have made the explosives. He has claimed he came to Cyprus to seek asylum, saying he had met the 32-year-old in Malaysia two years ago and that the 32-year-old was going to put him up.
The 32-year-old, who lived in Limassol, is alleged to have organised the 33-year-old’s trips. He was allegedly named by the 33-year-old, who also claimed the 32-year-old went with him to Istanbul.
The 54-year-old, four of whose children serve in the National Guard and the police, is alleged to have received packages containing dangerous substances.
