The Famagusta district court on Monday issued an eight-day remand against four people aged 43, 18, 23, and 26, suspected to be behind the arrival of five boats carrying a total of 271 irregular migrants in Cyprus on Sunday from Lebanon.
The first boat carried 21 people, of which 19 were men and two were women, the second 179 (109 men, 17 women and 53 children of which 17 were unaccompanied), the third 27 (19 men, two women and six children), the fourth 24 (12 men, two women and six children) and the fifth 20 (11 men, nine women and five children), the Cyprus News Agency (CNA) said.
The migrants disembarked at Cape Greco in the Famagusta district, where all relevant protocols were activated.
Most of them are reported to be Syrian nationals. Their journey from Lebanon began after weather conditions improved in the past days.
Upon completion of their registration process, they were transferred to the Pournara reception centre in Kokkinotrimithia.