On Sunday, throngs of irate Cypriots flocked to a British air base to demonstrate against the purported transfer of arms to Israel for its violent conflict in Gaza.
One of the two military locations kept by the British under the 1960 treaty that saw the island of Cyprus gain independence from colonial authority is Akrotiri, which is close to Limassol in the southern part of the country.
According to Charis Pashias, head of the Cyprus Peace Council, “the demonstration against the British base at Akrotiri is being organized to condemn the transport of arms from the British bases to support the Israeli army’s military operations in the Gaza Strip.”
Locals have seen a “daily” increase in the number of planes from Akrotiri, Pashias, since the most recent escalation of the Israel-Palestine conflict began on October 7.