A volcano in south-west Iceland erupted for the second time in the year, marking the sixth eruption on the Reykjanes peninsula since 2021. The previous eruption occurred on January 14 and lasted about two days, with lava flows reaching Grindavik town, leading to the evacuation of its nearly 4,000 residents and setting some houses on fire.
– Cyprus ranks 49 out of 180 countries in the latest Corruption Perception Index (CPI) released by Transparency International.
– Cyprus was awarded a score of 53 points in the 2023 CPI, which is a slight increase from 52 in 2022 but the same as in 2021.
– This score marks Cyprus’s lowest point since 2012, indicating a trend of increasing corruption levels.
– Denmark, Finland, and New Zealand are the top-ranked countries in the CPI as the least corrupt.
– Western European countries are showing a decline in the CPI, suggesting a need for stronger anti-corruption measures.
– Hungary, Romania, and Bulgaria are the lowest-ranked countries in the Western Europe region.
– Cyprus has satisfactorily dealt with nine out of 16 recommendations from the latest Greco report on tackling corruption.
– One recommendation not implemented by Cyprus concerns the independence of prosecutors.
– A bill regarding the independence of prosecutors is currently before the Cypriot parliament.