EXTRA TEST NECESSARY FOR THOSE COMING FROM CATEGORY C COUNTRIES

  Cyprus Mail 12 August 2020 - by Evie Andreou

People arriving from category C countries must take a coronavirus test 48 hours before their 14-day self-isolation ends at their own expense, according to the latest decree by the health minister published on Wednesday.

The health ministry said that according to the decree, people arriving from category C countries are obliged to take a PCR coronavirus test 48 hours prior to the expiration of their self-isolation. They must then send the results to monada@mphs.moh.gov.cy .

“It goes without saying that the self-isolation will end if the result of the repeat lab test is a negative one,” it said. The cost of the coronavirus test, which is being given by certified labs, is paid by the people in self-isolation themselves. The health ministry recalled that the maximum price for these tests is €85.

The latest arrangement was introduced as part of the government’s strategy for tackling and managing the coronavirus pandemic and to limit the entry of Covid-19 cases through the Republic’s ports of entry, the ministry said. The decision is based on the epidemiological outlook in various countries, which was re-evaluated by the epidemiological surveillance unit and infectious disease control for Covid-19.

The ministry recalls that entry from passengers arriving from category C countries is allowed only to some categories of citizens who have the option to either present a negative coronavirus test not older than 72 hours or get tested upon their arrival in Cyprus. If their period of residence in the Republic exceeds four days, these people must remain in self-isolation for 14 days, the ministry said.

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EASY JET CANCELS ALL PACKAGE HOLIDAYS TO FRANCE, MALTA AND THE NETHERLANDS

 Evening Standard 14 August 2020 - by Laura Hampson

© Provided by Evening Standard

Budget airline easyJet has cancelled all its package holidays to France, Malta and the Netherlands today after the nations were reintroduced to the government’s quarantine list.

Yesterday it was announced that Brits arriving from France, Malta, the Netherlands, Monaco, Aruba and Turks & Caicos would have to undergo the mandatory 14-day quarantine when returning to the UK from early Saturday morning.

An easyJet spokesperson said: “We heard the news from the government on Malta, France and the Netherlands being added to the travel quarantine list and the FCO advice changing to all but essential travel for these countries at the same time as everyone else.

“Despite another late night announcement, we were able to contact our affected customers very soon afterwards to let them know we have cancelled their holiday and will be processing full refunds as quickly as possible.”

The airline has said all holidays will be cancelled until the end of August, when the situation will be reviewed.

It was also reported this morning that easyJet sold 23 of its aircraft to financiers today, including a Chinese state controlled bank, for a whopping £608 million. The airline will now lease back the planes.

This takes easyJet’s Covid funding to £2.4 billion, including £400 million from two bank loans and £600 million from the government’s corporate financing scheme.

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HOLIDAY CHAOS AS FRANCE, MALTA AND NETHERLANDS ADDED TO UK's TRAVEL QUARANTINE LIST

 Sky News 14 August 2020 - Tom Gillespie, news reporter

© Reuters France reported 2,524 new coronavirus infections on Wednesday

Hundreds of thousands of Britons have had their holidays left in disarray after France, Malta and the Netherlands were among several countries added to the UK's quarantine list.

Travellers returning from those countries - as well as Monaco, Turks & Caicos and Aruba - must self-isolate for 14 days on arrival in the UK.

The measure, which some fear may spark a mass exodus of Britons desperate to get home, will come into force at 4am on Saturday morning.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said the decision to add France to the list came after the country reported a 66% increase in the number of positive coronavirus tests in the past week.

Mr Shapps announced the move just hours after the prime minister said his government would be "absolutely ruthless" in deciding whether to impose the restriction.

"We're announcing that there will now be a quarantine brought in for a number of other locations including France, Holland and some others," Mr Shapps said.

"That's because we've absolutely worked so hard to ensure that we're keeping our numbers down here, and we can't afford to reimport those cases from elsewhere."

He added: "We've got to a point with France in particular, and these other countries, where if we didn't announce it now, we would know that the infection rate was already too high and we were not doing anything about it.

"So we're announcing it now and it will be operational throughout the United Kingdom from 4am on Saturday morning."

The French health ministry reported 2,524 new coronavirus infections on Wednesday - the highest since its lockdown restrictions were first imposed.

The UK government's move has also delivered a blow to France's hard-pressed tourism industry, which relies heavily on British visitors.

France has said it will reciprocate, but did not give further details.

French junior minister for European affairs Clément Beaune described the UK move as "a British decision that we regret and which will lead to a measure of reciprocity, hoping that things will return to normal as soon as possible."

Eurotunnel Le Shuttle warned Britons in France that the weekend's services are busy.

They said: "The service is already very busy this weekend and there is no additional capacity.

"To avoid long queues and severe disruption we strongly advise against turning up at the terminal outside the allocated time. Customers will be unable to board alternative shuttles without a valid booking."

Prime Minister Boris Johnson had earlier said government officials would be "looking at the data" in relation to the number of cases in France.

Mr Johnson said while on a visit to Northern Ireland: "We have got to be absolutely ruthless about this, even with our closest and dearest friends and partners.

"I think everybody understands that.

"We will be looking at the data a bit later on this afternoon, looking exactly where France and other countries are getting to.

"We can't be remotely complacent about our own situation."

Britain has also imposed a 14-day quarantine period for arrivals from countries including Spain and Belgium, responding to rising infections and fears of a second wave of the virus, having initially declared them safe for travel.

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ITALY ORDERS CORONAVIRUS TESTS FOR ARRIVALS FROM FOUR COUNTRIES

 Reuters 12 August 2020

© Reuters/GUGLIELMO MANGIAPANE The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Rome

ROME (Reuters) - Italy ruled on Wednesday that people travelling from Croatia, Greece, Malta and Spain must be tested for the coronavirus on arrival, as new infections increase in the four countries which are popular holiday destinations for Italians.

Health Minister Roberto Speranza said on Facebook he had signed the new order, adding that anyone travelling from or through Colombia would not be allowed in Italy.

"We have to continue with a prudent approach to defend the results we've achieved thanks to the sacrifice we have all made in recent months," Speranza said.

Italy was the first country outside China to be badly hit by the disease, and has recorded more than 35,000 deaths since its outbreak came to light on Feb. 21.

The daily tally of new cases in Italy has accelerated over the last month, though less steeply than in numerous other European countries.

Some 481 new infections were registered on Wednesday, and 10 deaths, the Civil Protection Agency reported.

(Reporting By Gavin Jones; editing by Valentina Za)

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CORONAVIRUS - TUI CANCELS ALL HOLIDAYS TO CYPRUS UNTIL AUGUST 23

 Cyprus Mail 12 August 2020 - by Evie Andreou

British tour and flight operator TUI announced on Wednesday that it was cancelling all holidays to Cyprus until August 23, citing the testing requirements imposed by the Cypriot authorities.

“Due to the local authorities in Cyprus implementing testing requirements, we have cancelled all holidays to Cyprus up to and including 22 August 2020,” the operator said in a brief statement.

It added that customers will be able to cancel and receive a full cash refund or amend their holiday and receive a booking incentive.

Similar announcements were issued by TUI for Morocco, Spain and Portugal. The company, citing UK Foreign Office advice, extended holiday cancellations up to and including August 28 for mainland Spain and Portugal and the Balearic and Canary Islands up to and including August 23.

“We know this is very disappointing for those looking forward to their well-deserved break. The health and safety of our customers and colleagues is always our highest priority,” the company said.

Another tour and flight operator from the UK, Jet2, announced on Tuesday it would resume flights to Cyprus from August 17 citing “clear demand” from the British market.

Flights to Larnaca are scheduled to begin on August 17 and Paphos on August 18.

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BRITISH AIRWAYS SET TO BE THE 'UK's FIRST AIRLINE TO CARRY OUT PRE-FLIGHT COVID-19 TESTS'

 The Mirror 12 August 2020 - by Rosaleen Fenton

© Getty Images British Airways could be the first European airline to offer the service

British Airways is reportedly set to become the first airline in Europe to offer passengers pre-flight coronavirus tests.

The carrier is said to be working with Boots, who will conduct the Covid-19 testing at a number of pharmacies across the UK.

The airline said that it was looking at all options to "make travel as safe and stress-free as possible for our customers in these unprecedented times."

This could see travellers having to take two coronavirus tests - one before flying with BA and another when they arrive at their destination, if the country requires it.

Sources talking to travel blog God Save The Points said training for Boots colleagues will begin next week.

More airlines could follow suit in a bid to restore confidence among travellers.

Emirates Airline previously introduced the service in March - alongside insurance for all travellers valid for 31 days from the day they travel which covers them if they catch coronavirus.

Globally, the aviation industry is feeling the financial hit following months of lockdown and cancelled flights.

All airlines now require passengers to wear a mask at the airport and on board the plane - apart from those with medical exemptions.

Brits travelling to France face even stricter measures with the government requiring passengers to wear surgical masks.

Two travellers flying with easyJet have said they were not allowed to board due to wearing reusable mask, before fellow passengers supplied some.

A British Airways spokeswoman said: "British Airways is not making pre-flight testing mandatory for all customers.  

"We are currently discussing the possibility of helping our customers access pre-flight testing through third parties if their destination requires this, however no plans have been finalised. We will share more in due course.

"We are doing everything we can to make travel as safe and stress-free as possible for our customers in these unprecedented times."

Nearly three million travel and ­tourism jobs in the UK travel and tourism sector could be lost — while the economy is close to losing £142billion from the sector.

The World Travel & Tourism Council has said rapid coronavirus testing at airports could help save jobs and stop the need for blanket travel bans.

A spokeswoman said: “WTTC is calling upon Governments around the world to begin a substantial programme of investment to ensure comprehensive testing facilities are implemented at airports, which will help prevent the spread of Covid-19 and see the return of safe travels.

"It is imperative that all airports, catering for international travel, implement globally recognised testing standards for both inbound and outbound passengers.

"This will provide reassurance to all travellers, maintain ‘air corridors’ between countries, and remove damage and disruption caused by blunt quarantines which massively impact the recovery of the Travel & Tourism sector.”

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CYPRUS MOVES POLAND TO CATEGORY B FROM A ON ITS GREEN LIST [wef 14/8]

 in-cyprus 12 August 2020 - by Annie Charalambous

Cyprus has moved Poland to category B from category A and Portugal to Category B from C as regards the classification of countries based on their epidemiological risk, according to a Health Ministry announcement.

The new classification is valid as of August 14, and this means that all passengers from Category B need to show a COVID-19 negative test done 72 hours prior to their departure for Cyprus.

Cyprus citizens and their spouses, citizens with legal residency in the country and passengers who fall under the Vienna Convention category can be tested at the airport upon their arrival.

Passengers who cannot be tested at the countries of their origin because a Covid-19 test is not provided at labs, can also be tested in Cyprus.

All these passengers bear the cost of the test and have to be in isolation until the results are out.

(CNA)

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WIZZ AIR SAYS SORRY TO PASSENGERS TURNED AWAY FROM ATHENS FLIGHT FOR MISSING OUT OPTIONAL MIDDLE INITIAL

 The Independent 11 August 2020 - by Simon Calder

© Provided by The Independent

Wizz Air has apologised to passengers who were turned away from an Athens-bound flight for perceived flaws on the Greek “passenger locator form” (PLF).

Twenty-eight passengers were offloaded from the airline’s flight W9 4467 from Luton to Athens on Thursday 6 August.

Some were denied boarding by ground staff because they had not included a middle initial when completing the online form.

But the instructions for the form, which was introduced by Greece when it reopened borders for the summer, make it clear that the middle initial is optional.

Harry Young and his partner spent over £600 on alternative transportation after being refused boarding at Luton.

Under European air passengers’ rights rules, airlines need not pay compensation or offer refunds if they present themselves with “inadequate travel documentation”.

Initially a spokesperson for Wizz Air told The Independent: “Passengers who do not complete the form or do so incorrectly will be refused carriage, and are not entitled to compensation.”

The carrier said that missing middle names would result in offloading.

But the Budapest-based airline has now “established that passengers travelling to Greece are not required to include a middle name on their passenger locator form”.

The spokesperson said: “As a matter of priority, the airline is investigating whether any passengers were wrongfully denied carriage on the W9 4467 flight as a result of not including a middle name on their PLF, despite correctly completing the rest of the form.

“Should there be any affected passengers, Wizz Air will contact them directly to apologise and offer the relevant compensation, as well as the options of rebooking or refunding their ticket.”

Such travellers are due €400 (£360) in statutory compensation under the air passengers’ rights rules, known as EU261.

In addition, the carrier is liable for additional costs for alternative flights.

Mr Young said: “Our form was correct, we had it on time, we had checked in to the flight, the rest of our party were able to travel.

“It was simply one check-in woman was having a bad day.”

Many other travellers on a wide range of airlines have faced problems since the PLF was introduced.

Issues include listing family members and the late receipt of the "QR code" granting permission, which is supposed to be emailed at midnight on the day of departure.

The Greek Embassy in London has not yet responded to enquiries from The Independent about the scheme.

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GREEK AUTHORITIES ANNOUNCE FURTHER COVID-19 CONTAINMENT MEASURES

in-cyprus 11 August 2020  - by Annie Charalambous

Greece seems to have ‘formally’ entered its second wave of the coronavirus pandemic with Health Minister Vasillis Kikilias announcing further containment measures late on Monday.

“Transmission of the virus is growing dangerously,” Kikilias warned after the country recorded its highest number of positive diagnoses ever, a record 203 cases on Sunday.

In the island of Poros, alone, a surge in cases late last week prompted authorities to announce an unprecedented crackdown including the closures of clubs, bars and restaurants from 11pm.

The new measures mainly affect travelling from certain countries, operations hours in the catering sector in several regional units, as well as cultural and other events such a concerts.

Until this month, Greek health officials appeared to have the epidemic under control.

But compounded by a sudden jump in the number requiring incubation, up from nine on 1 August to 22 on Monday evening, left no doubt that the highly contagious disease was working its way through society.

  

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WIZZ AIR PASSENGERS HEADING TO GREECE LOSE THOUSANDS OF POUNDS FOR FAILING TO INCLUDE MIDDLE INITIAL ON ONLINE FORM

 The Independent 10 August 2020 - by Simon Calder

© Provided by Independent Digital News & Media Limited

Wizz Air has warned passengers that if they fail to add a middle initial on the “passenger locator form” (PLF) for Greece, they will be denied boarding.

Since Greece opened its frontiers to tourists in July, prospective visitors must complete the form ahead of travel. They are then sent a confirmation email at midnight on the day of departure which they must show at the airport and on arrival.

But many passengers checking in for flights have been turned away because of flaws in their applications.

On Thursday 8 July, Wizz Air offloaded 28 passengers – about one in six – from a Luton-Athens flight because of what the airline says was failure to comply.

Harry Young and his partner were among them – and ended up spending over £600 to reach their friends in Greece. He told The Independent: “We had filled out our Greek PLF forms correctly and for the correct date a few days before.

“The middle name was optional on this form when entering details. I didn’t enter mine and nor did my partner.

“We were stopped due to not having a middle name on our PLF forms. We were sent to a supervisor and manager who were not helpful at all.

“They were insistent we were in the wrong and would not listen to any passenger – even after showing them on my phone, a new form where it clearly said the middle name was optional.”

Mr Young and his partner spent £100 on a taxi to Heathrow and over £500 on one-way flights on British Airways to Athens.

The airline insists the couple are in the wrong.

A spokesperson said: “Wizz Air confirms that 28 passengers who were due to fly from London Luton to Athens were offloaded from the W9 4467 flight as a result of having no Passenger Locator Form (PLF), mistakes on their form, or insufficient detail on their form, such as missing middle names.

“Wizz Air reminds passengers that it is their responsibility to complete a PLF with all the necessary information to be allowed to fly to Greece.

“Passengers who do not complete the form or do so incorrectly will be refused carriage, and are not entitled to compensation.”

The additional costs for the rejected passengers run into thousands of pounds.

Under European air passengers’ rights rules, travellers who are correctly documented but are denied boarding are entitled to €400 in cash compensation, in addition to recompense of related costs.

Greece has proved very popular among British holidaymakers in August because of low levels of coronavirus and exemption from the need to quarantine on return to the UK.

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VIRUS-LINKED BORDER MOVES RAISE FEARS ON FREE TRAVEL IN EU

 Associated Press 10 August 2020 - By LORNE COOK, Associated Press

© Provided by Associated Press FILE - In this Monday, April 6, 2020 file photo, police perform checks on commercial and passenger traffic on the Dutch-Belgian border, during a partial lockdown to contain the spread of COVID-19 in Meer, Belgium. As European countries struggle to manage spikes in coronavirus cases, concern is mounting about a "second wave" of uncoordinated border restrictions within Europe that threatens the free movement of goods and people: a foundation stone that the world's biggest trading bloc is built on. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo, File)

BRUSSELS (AP) — As European countries struggle to manage spikes in coronavirus cases, concern is mounting about a “second wave” of uncoordinated border restrictions within Europe that threatens the free movement of goods and people — a foundation that the world’s biggest trading bloc is built on.

Despite repeated warnings about the dangers of unannounced checks, some countries have imposed new restrictions, or demanded that travelers quarantine, recalling the panic border closures after Europe’s first outbreak emerged in Italy in February, blocking traffic and medical equipment.

© Provided by Associated Press FILE - In this Tuesday, March 17, 2020 file photo, trucks stuck in a traffic jams for 60 kilometers (36 miles) on the Lithuanian side of the border to enter Poland in Vilnius, Lithuania. As European countries struggle to manage spikes in coronavirus cases, concern is mounting about a "second wave" of uncoordinated border restrictions within Europe that threatens the free movement of goods and people: a foundation stone that the world's biggest trading bloc is built on. (AP Photo/Saulius Zaura, File)

Beyond the economic impact of uncoordinated measures, experts fear that countries are becoming so used to lowering the gates at their frontiers as they see fit that the future of Europe’s ID-check free travel zone known as the Schengen area is in real peril.

© Provided by Associated Press FILE - In this Monday, July 6, 2020 file photo, cars queue at the Promahonas border crossing with Bulgaria. As European countries struggle to manage spikes in coronavirus cases, concern is mounting about a "second wave" of uncoordinated border restrictions within Europe that threatens the free movement of goods and people: a foundation stone that the world's biggest trading bloc is built on. (AP Photo/Giannis Papanikos, File)

In a letter to national governments, seen by The Associated Press, the European Commission warns that “while we must ensure that the EU is ready for possible resurgences of COVID-19 cases ... we should at the same time avoid a second wave of uncoordinated actions at the internal borders of the EU.”

“The re-establishment of ineffective restrictions and internal border controls must be avoided. Rather, the response should be to have targeted, proportionate and coordinated measures, informed by scientific evidence,” said the letter, sent to the 27 EU member countries and Britain.

Belgium — where EU headquarters are based — does not allow travel to some regions in Spain, notably Catalonia in the north, and also has bans on people coming from parts of France, Britain, Bulgaria, Croatia, Lithuania, Romania and Switzerland.

Scandinavian nations are notably quick to react to any rise in infection rates. Denmark’s foreign ministry now has Spain, Bulgaria, Luxembourg, Romania and Andorra on its so-called red list. Norway, which is not an EU member but is part of the Schengen area, has not hesitated either.

© Provided by Associated Press FILE - In this Sunday, May 17, 2020 file photo, people gather at the border crossing at Saed, Denmark, to attend a demonstration to open the border between Denmark and Germany. As European countries struggle to manage spikes in coronavirus cases, concern is mounting about a "second wave" of uncoordinated border restrictions within Europe that threatens the free movement of goods and people: a foundation stone that the world's biggest trading bloc is built on. (Claus Fisker/Ritzau Scanpix via AP, File)

“Unfortunately, developments in several European countries are not moving in the right direction,” Norwegian Foreign Minister Ine Eriksen Soereide said. She says that people arriving from France, Monaco, Switzerland and the Czech Republic must now self-quarantine for 10 days.

The use of compulsory COVID-19 testing is also growing. Germany is testing people arriving from high-risk areas, including parts of Bulgaria and Romania, which are EU partners but not members of the Schengen area. Greece and Italy are taking similar steps for the two countries.

But it’s the constant tinkering with travel restrictions that is of greatest concern. EU governments can impose border restrictions for reasons of public security — including health concerns — as they see fit. However, the measures should be targeted and limited in time, and governments should warn of their plans.

© Provided by Associated Press FILE - In this Monday, June 15, 2020 file photo, cars drive to Belgium at the French-Belgium border in Le Bizet, northern France. As European countries struggle to manage spikes in coronavirus cases, concern is mounting about a "second wave" of uncoordinated border restrictions within Europe that threatens the free movement of goods and people: a foundation stone that the world's biggest trading bloc is built on. (AP Photo/Michel Spingler, File)

Since 2015, the Schengen rules have been routinely flouted, mostly due to distrust among European countries who doubted that their partners would do the right thing. First some countries relied on closures to help cope with the arrival of hundreds of thousands of migrants, many fleeing conflict in Syria or Iraq, seeking better lives in northern Europe. Some of those restrictions are still in place.

The big challenge to Schengen these days is the coronavirus pandemic.

“Scenes of backed-up borders and checkpoints would have been unthinkable just five years ago. Yet today, the unilateral reintroduction of border checks and border closures has become an accepted part of member states’ toolkits to respond to cross-border emergencies,” according to the Migration Policy Institute.

© Provided by Associated Press In this Wednesday, July 1, 2020 file photo, from left to right, Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, Spain's King Felipe VI, Portugal's President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa and Portugal's Prime Minister Antonio Costa during a ceremony to mark the reopening of the Portugal-Spain border in Elvas, Portugal. As European countries struggle to manage spikes in coronavirus cases, concern is mounting about a "second wave" of uncoordinated border restrictions within Europe that threatens the free movement of goods and people: a foundation stone that the world's biggest trading bloc is built on. (AP Photo/Armando Franca, File)

A side-effect of the virus border restrictions — which might be welcomed by countries such as Austria, Denmark, Hungary or Poland that are still worried about migrant arrivals — is that the number of people applying for asylum also plummeted.

© Provided by Associated Press FILE - In this Monday, June 15, 2020 file photo, French gendarmes approach a car at the Saint-Ludovic border check point on the Franco-Italian border in Menton, France. As European countries struggle to manage spikes in coronavirus cases, concern is mounting about a "second wave" of uncoordinated border restrictions within Europe that threatens the free movement of goods and people: a foundation stone that the world's biggest trading bloc is built on. (AP Photo/Daniel Cole, File)

The danger, the institute said, is that “the instinct to return to national borders at times of crisis may only grow stronger, particularly as second or third waves of the virus necessitate the reintroduction of some level of travel restrictions.”

___

Jan M. Olsen in Copenhagen contributed to this report.

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EU CITIZENS SYMIED BY RESTRICTIONS ON CROSSING POINTS

 Cyprus Mail 10 August 2020 -By Agnieszka Rakoczy

The Ledra St crossing point in Nicosia, usually packed with tourists, remains closed

For Iwona, single mother of a nine-year-old, it was supposed to be the holiday of a lifetime.

In late June, over coffee with friends, she had listened eagerly to their chat about plans to spend a week in August in a northern Cyprus hotel and thought how it would be great to join them.

“I found a travel company online that could book me. I discussed all the details over the phone with them, including a possibility of cancellation due to the pandemic,” she recalls as she talks to the Sunday Mail by phone from Poland.

“They assured me there would be no problem. So I booked my holiday and paid — five thousand zloty (1,200 euros) in total — for the all-inclusive package for two.”

Now, four days ahead of her scheduled flight to Larnaca, Iwona still has no idea what will happen once she lands in the Republic of Cyprus.

Thanks to social media, she has learnt that while she can cross to the north using the Pyla crossing operated by the British bases, a return to Larnaca in order to catch her flight home is basically impossible.

According to the official statement by the RoC government published on June 21, only Cypriots and residents in the Republic can pass through the crossings which are open between the two sides.  Nobody stops EU citizens crossing from the RoC into the north, but they cannot re-enter the south if they are not residents. The same restriction applies to EU citizens living in the north.

Nowhere is this more obvious than at the British bases-managed crossing in the bicommunal village of Pyla.

“Yes, we allow people to cross to the north if they want to,” bases’ spokesman Jan Kemal informed the Sunday Mail.

“We inform them that we won’t allow them back to the south but that if they want to continue on their way we have no problem with it.”

This is precisely what happened to Swedish national Per and his daughter about a week ago. After flying into Larnaca from Stockholm via the Czech Republic and Greece, they were taken to Pyla by taxi, warned by bases’ personnel there that they would not be able to come back the same way, and proceeded to cross into the north.

“We will be now flying out of here from Ercan next week,” Per told the Sunday Mail.

When Iwona asked her online holiday booking company wakacje.pl

about their position on the crossing issue, they confirmed that, given the current circumstances, crossing to the north to spend her holidays there would be at her own risk. They did offer to switch her to a similar hotel in the south.

“Obviously, I am not going to risk crossing to the north with a small child in,” she says. “Actually, I don’t want to travel at all anymore but in that case it looks like I might not get my money back. So I guess I will have to accept their offer.”

According to Ozgen Bora, director of the Turkish Cypriot company Tour Plus that brings about 110,000 tourists to the north every year, more than 50 per cent of their clientele flies into Larnaca. The rest comes by charter flights that land in the north’s Tymbou airport.

“This year we haven’t seen a single tourist coming via Larnaca, and at the same time there are no charter flights coming to Ercan [Tymbou],” Bora tells the Sunday Mail.

“Since whatever is happening this year was planned in 2019, we are now caught in a vicious circle. Customers paid tour operators and tour operators paid flight operators and ourselves, and as for us, we paid the hotels. So now this money is stuck there. Most of our hotels are closed. Those that are open are empty. I do believe that the restrictions introduced by the Greek Cypriots are caused by politics and economy.”

Exim, the Polish tour operator that works closely with wakacje,pl, the online booking firm used by Iwona, has been operating in both Cypriot markets for years.

“We haven’t sent a single tourist to the north since March,” Exim’s director Marcin Malysz tells the Sunday Mail.

“Instead, we have been offering customers holidays in the south.”

Malysz says that Exim does not lose money when redirecting its customers to hotels in the south.

“If anything, it is the Greek Cypriot hotels that are losing money, and not only because we pay them less than they would charge normally, but also because if the crossings to the north were opened there would be more regular flights to Larnaca and Paphos, fuller planes, and more tourists coming to visit both sides of the island. I cannot see how this crossing situation relates solely to Covid-19. These restrictions are political.”

Malysz adds that he cannot fathom how and why the RoC government can deny free movement on the island to EU citizens.

“As far as I know it is against both the EU principle of the free movement as well as the Green Line Regulations.”

The Sunday Mail contacted several EU diplomatic missions in Cyprus that confirmed having had to deal with the plight of their nationals being stranded in the north, unable to cross to the south in order to catch their return flights home.

“Up to very recently, we were able to arrange such emergency crossings with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs but about two weeks ago we received an unsigned email from the MFA saying that this option is not valid anymore,” one diplomatic source said.

“So now if I have anybody calling me from the north about leaving the island my only recourse is to advise them to use the illegal airport.”

The Sunday Mail also contacted the European Commission in Brussels to check if they were aware of the situation.

The commission confirmed that they were informed by the RoC government about the restrictions and answered: “Temporary controls or restrictions at borders may only be used in exceptional circumstances to respond to situations seriously affecting public policy or internal security and, as a last resort measure. They should last only as long as the extraordinary circumstances persist.

“The commission is monitoring the restrictions very closely.”

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