Tension rises as abandoned beach reopens in Cyprus

Turkey and Nothern Cyprus have opened up the beachfront of Varosha, an uninhabited, fenced-off suburb. — AP

Northern Cyprus has reopened the beach area of an abandoned resort in no-man’s land, a move condemned by Greek Cypriots and likely to conjure up memories of the 1974 Turkish invasion that partitioned the island.

Ersin Tatar, premier of the breakaway state of Northern Cyprus, made the announcement to open recently in Ankara alongside Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, who said he backed the decision on Varosha, sealed off within barbed wire for decades.