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As arrivals rise, Cyprus intercepts boat with 101 on board

by Reuters
Tuesday, 14 January 2020 14:41 GMT

Syrian refugees arrive on a Cyprus coast guard boat to the south-east of the island in the region of Protaras, January 14, 2020.REUTERS/Yiannis Kourtoglou

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The island has seen a gradual uptick in refugee and migrant arrivals as other routes to Europe have become more difficult

ATHENS, Jan 14 (Reuters) - Cyprus intercepted a vessel carrying 101 Syrians off its coast on Tuesday, police said, one of the largest arrivals of refugees from the neighbouring country in recent months.

The Syrians were loaded at sea onto a coastguard vessel and from there led to a harbour in the south-east of the island.

"There were minors among those on the boat, which appears to have set off from Turkey," a police spokeswoman added.

The island, the closest European Union member state to the Middle East, has seen a gradual uptick in arrivals of undocumented migrants and refugees in the past 18 months as other routes have become more difficult to cross.

Many are refugees from Syria, but there has also been an increase in arrivals of people fleeing upheaval in Cameroon via the unrecognised breakaway state in north Cyprus.

(Additional reporting by Yiannis Kourtoglou; Writing By Michele Kambas, Editing by William Maclean)

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