Cyprus reacted with incredulity on Thursday to warnings from Lebanon's Hezbollah that the island could be dragged into conflict if tensions with Israel blew up into a fully-fledged war.
"Any threats against our member state are threats against the EU," © Mena Today
Cyprus reacted with incredulity on Thursday to warnings from Lebanon's Hezbollah that the island could be dragged into conflict if tensions with Israel blew up into a fully-fledged war.
The EU member state closest to the Middle East, Cyprus was caught off guard by comments from Hezbollah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah late on Wednesday that the island could be a target if it permitted Israel to use its military facilities in the event of an attack on Lebanon.
"The Republic of Cyprus is in no way involved in war conflict," Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides responded, describing Nasrallah's comments as "not pleasant".
The EU also weighed in. "Any threats against our member state are threats against the EU," a spokesperson said.
Cyprus has always viewed itself as above the politics of its neighbours and offered sanctuary to tens of thousands of Lebanese fleeing civil war in the 1970s and 80s.
It has lobbied its EU partners to offer Lebanon financial assistance, and recently set up a maritime corridor to dispatch humanitarian aid to famine-threatened Palestinians in Gaza.
"Cyprus is a credible enabler of stability, and an acknowledged regional hub for humanitarian operations, based on excellent relations with all the countries in the region," said government spokesperson Konstantinos Letymbiotis.
But it also comes against the backdrop of improved ties with Israel, and the more visible involvement of British sovereign bases on the island in military operations in Syria and more recently, Yemen. The Israeli air force is also known to conduct exercises in Cyprus's airspace, and in recent years the two countries have conducted joint military drills.
Cypriots in the divided capital Nicosia said people had enough to deal with from the lingering complications of Turkey's invasion of northern Cyprus in 1974 after a brief Greek-inspired coup.
"Last night when I heard about the news, yes, I was worried," said Filios Christodoulou, 84.
Others were unfazed.
"We have nothing to do with this war," said Stella Patatini, 62. "On the contrary, we are helping peace in the region and assistance to the Palestinians so I feel safe in Cyprus,"
By Yiannis Kourtoglou and Marinos Meletiou
The body of Hashem Safieddine, who was slated to replace slain Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah and was targeted in an Israeli attack on the Dahieh earlier this month, was found.
Lebanon's Hezbollah movement said on Tuesday there would be no negotiations while fighting continued with Israel and it claimed sole responsibility for a drone attack on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's holiday home.
Concerns over a wider conflict in the Middle East have prompted international airlines to suspend flights to the region or to avoid affected air space.
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