Police are looking for a man who attempted to rob a bank in  Pyrgos village, in the Limassol district on Tuesday but fled when he couldn’t open the door to gain entrance.

According to Limassol police spokesman Ioannis Soteriadis, the man approached Eastern Limassol bank (branch of the Cooperative Credit Bank) at 8.40am wearing a hood and holding a gun. He tried to open the door but failed as according to security precautions most banks now have installed an automatic door lock.

Bank employees, seeing the man trying to get inside immediately notified the police.

On realising that his attempt had failed, the man fled the scene, and according to the police got into an old blue Mercedes with an accomplice waiting behind the wheel, and drove away. The car had no licence plates.

The man is described as 1.80m tall, wearing army pants and a jacket.

By Iacovos Constantinou
THE second team to join Alki in the second division will be decided on the last day of the regular season on Wednesday with two of the three ‘unwilling’ contenders, AEK Kouklion and Aris Limassol, facing daunting fixtures against league leaders AEL and third-placed Apollon respectively.

It will take quite a performance from the Kouklia team if they are to get anything out of their clash with leaders AEL. The Limassol team wants all three points so that they can begin the playoff stage with at least a one-point advantage over their nearest rivals. As things stand now, a draw will be enough for AEK to beat the drop for now.

The same can be said about the Aris Limassol v Apollon clash at the Tsirion Stadium even though in this case a draw may not be enough for Aris to beat the drop. Apollon, three points off the top, cannot afford to fall further behind as this may prove costly in their challenge for the championship.

The third relegation candidate, Enosis Neon Paralimni, were considered a certainty for the drop a month ago but a string of favourable results saw them climb to within two points of fellow strugglers Aris. Against Ethnikos Achnas only a win will give them hope of first division survival.

The most attention-grabbing clash of the day is the Nicosia derby between Omonia and APOEL. Omonia have all but given up hope for any domestic honours but this will count for nothing when they face their fiercest rivals. A win will be some kind of consolation for their demanding but loyal fans. APOEL, unbeaten since the beginning of November, welcome back five players from injury and suspension and hope to extend their unbeaten run.

Ermis Aradippou travel to the Antonis Papadopoulos stadium to face Anorthosis. They will be hoping to heap more misery on Anorthosis, who have lost their previous five games and seem incapable of any fightback.

If rumours are to be believed Alki may be playing not only their last game in the top division but their last game as Alki Football Club against Nea Salmina.

The final game of the day is between Doxa Katokopias and AEK Larnaca.

Doxa Katokopias v AEK Larnaca (15.30), Ethnikos Achnas v Enosis Neon Paralimniou, AEK Kouklion v AEL, Alki v Nea Salamina, Apollon v Aris (all 16.00), Omonia v APOEL and Anorthosis v Ermis (18.00)

By Steve Gutterman and Thomas Grove

Defying Ukrainian protests and Western sanctions, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a treaty on Tuesday making Crimea part of Russia again but said he did not plan to seize any other regions of Ukraine.

In a fiercely patriotic address to a joint session of parliament in the Kremlin, punctuated by standing ovations, cheers and tears, Putin said Crimea’s disputed referendum vote on Sunday, held under Russian military occupation, had shown the overwhelming will of the people to be reunited with Russia.

As the Russian national anthem played, Putin and Crimean leaders signed a treaty to make Crimea part of the Russian Federation, declaring: “In the hearts and minds of people, Crimea has always been and remains an inseparable part of Russia.” Parliament is expected to begin ratifying the treaty within days.

Putin later told a flag-waving rally in Red Square beneath the walls of the Kremlin, near where Soviet politburo leaders once took the salute at communist May Day parades, that Crimea has returned to “home port”.

Russian forces took control of the Black Sea peninsula in late February following the toppling of Moscow-backed Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich by a protest movement sparked by his decision to spurn a far-reaching trade deal with the European Union last November and seek closer ties with Russia.

Putin’s speech drew immediate hostile reaction in Kiev and the West.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk said the conflict in Crimea had moved from a political to a military stage and he had asked his defence minister to call an urgent meeting with his Russian, US and British counterparts.

“Today Russian soldiers began shooting at Ukrainian servicemen. This is a war crime,” he said.

He was referring to an incident at a compound near the Crimean capital Simferopol in which a military spokesman said a Ukrainian officer was shot dead and another injured when “unknown forces, fully equipped and their faces covered” attacked the base.

Witnesses said there was no immediate evidence that Russian soldiers were involved in the shooting. A Russian Defence Ministry spokesman declined immediate comment.

US Vice President Joe Biden called Moscow’s action a “land grab” and stressed on a visit to Poland Washington’s commitment to defending the security of NATO allies on Russian borders.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Russia’s move was unacceptable to the international community, while Britain suspended military cooperation with Russia.

“It is completely unacceptable for Russia to use force to change borders, on the basis of a sham referendum held at the barrel of a Russian gun,” British Prime Minister David Cameron said, threatening Putin with “more serious consequences”.

BLACK AND WHITE

In his speech, the Russian leader lambasted Western nations for what he called hypocrisy, saying they had endorsed Kosovo’s right to self-determination and independence from Serbia but now denied Crimeans the same rights, he said.

“You cannot call the same thing black today and white tomorrow,” Putin declared to stormy applause, saying that while he did not seek conflict with the West, Western partners had “crossed the line” over Ukraine and behaved “irresponsibly”.

He said Ukraine’s new leaders, in power since the overthrow of pro-Moscow president Viktor Yanukovichlast month, included “neo-Nazis, Russophobes and anti-Semites”.

Putin thanked China for what he called its support, even though Beijing abstained on a UN resolution on Crimea that Moscow had to veto on its own. He said he was sure Germans would understand the Russian people’s quest for reunification, just as Russia had supported German reunification in 1990.

And he sought to reassure Ukrainians that Moscow did not seek any further division of their country. Fears have been expressed in Kiev that Russia might move on the Russian-speaking eastern parts of Ukraine, where there has been tension between some Russian-speakers and the new authorities.

“Don’t believe those who try to frighten you with Russia and who scream that other regions will follow after Crimea,” Putin said. “We do not want a partition of Ukraine.”

Putin said Russian forces in Crimea had taken great care to avoid any bloodshed, contrasting it with NATO’s 1999 campaign to drive Serbian forces out of Kosovo. Reinforcements had remained within the treaty limit of 25,000 troops in the area, he said.

Setting out Moscow’s view of the events that led to the overthrow of Yanukovich last month, Putin said the “so-called authorities” in Kiev had stolen power in a coup, opening the way for extremists who would stop at nothing.

NATO SAILORS

Making clear Russia’s concern at the possibility of the U.S.-led NATO military alliance expanding into Ukraine, he declared: “I do not want to be welcomed in Sevastopol (Crimean home of Russia’s Black Sea fleet) by NATO sailors.”

Moscow’s seizure of Crimea has caused the most serious East-West crisis since the end of the Cold War and Putin showed no sign of backing down despite the threat of tougher sanctions.

In Crimea, where his speech and the signing ceremony were broadcast live, his words caused rapture for some.

“Putin’s done what our hearts were longing for,” said Natalia, a pensioner who sells snacks in a kiosk in the centre of Simferopol. “This finally brings things back to what they should be after all those years. For me, for my family, there can be no bigger joy, for us this is sacred.”

Feride Kurtbedinova, a high school student and a member of Crimea’s Muslim ethnic Tatar minority, said: “After Putin met with the Tatar leaders, that made it for me. He showed respect, gave us security guarantees, for Tatars that is important.”

Ukraine’s Yatseniuk earlier sought to reassure Moscow on two of its key concerns, saying in a televised address delivered in Russian that Kiev was not seeking to join NATO and would disarm Ukrainian nationalist militias.

On Monday, the United States and the EU imposed sanctions on a handful of officials from Russia and Ukraine accused of involvement in Moscow’s seizure of the Black Sea peninsula, most of whose 2 million residents are ethnic Russians.

Russian politicians scoffed at the sanctions. The State Duma, or lower house, adopted a statement urging Washington and Brussels to extend the visa ban and asset freeze to all its members. The Foreign Ministry in Moscow said it would retaliate.

The White House said leaders of the world’s seven leading industrial democracies will hold a Group of Seven summit without Russia on the sidelines of a nuclear security summit in The Hague next week to consider further responses to the crisis.

CLOSER TIES

Despite strongly worded condemnations, Western nations have been cautious in their first practical steps against Moscow, both to leave the door open for a diplomatic solution and out of reluctance to endanger the world economic recovery.

Russian stocks gained another 2 per cent after rallying strongly on Monday and the rouble rose after Putin said Russia would not seek to further divide Ukraine. Investors noted the initial sanctions did not target businesses or executives.

But Russia said its long-delayed privatisation programme could be postponed again, adding to a deepening economic crisis over Ukraine.

Washington and Brussels have said future punitive measures could affect the economy, energy and arms contracts as well as the private wealth of magnates close to Putin.

The EU also said its leaders would sign the political part of an association agreement with Ukraine on Friday, in a gesture of support for the fragile coalition in Kiev.

In a symbolic gesture, Crimean Prime Minister Sergei Aksyonov announced that Crimea would switch to Moscow time from March 30. In the Crimean capital Simferopol, Banks scrambled to introduce the rouble as an official currency alongside the Ukrainian hryvnia.

By Constantinos Psillides
AN Ivory Coast national seen in a video having his leg injured during a police arrest last year is being taken to court over charges of causing actual bodily harm to a police officer, the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said on Tuesday.

By Constantinos Psillides
INTERIOR Minister Socratis Hasikos on Tuesday described damning accusations by Amnesty International on the island’s ‘ruthless’ treatment of migrants as full of “inaccuracies and sweeping generalisations”.
On Monday, Amnesty said Cyprus showed a “ruthless and chilling” lack of compassion towards migrants, exploits EU law to hold migrants beyond the 18-month limit, routinely jails mothers and separates them from their children, and detains hundreds of political refugees.
Alternatives to detention were available but seldom offered, the organisation said. Instead, deportation orders are issued at the same time as detention orders without considering alternatives.
In a lengthy written statement Tuesday, Hasikos said the contents of the Amnesty release were based entirely on information its representatives had “selectively gathered” during their visit from the complaints from NGOs while ignoring explanations given by the government side.
His ministry, he said, categorically rejected that detention for deportation of recognised refugees was being carried out despite the fact that it is allowed in exceptional cases and under certain conditions. He said the law was applied like this in only one instance some time ago.
“Obviously, Amnesty International representatives are referring to Syrian prisoners in Menoyia whose deportation was incidental to their convictions for a criminal offence,” said Hasikos. Hasikos accused Amnesty representatives of mistakenly assuming that a number of Syrians held at the Menoyia centre were political refugees.
Even in that situation, no one was being deported to Syria due to the unstable situation there and the authorities were looking at deporting them to other countries where they might have family.
On the accusation that Cyprus routinely separates mothers from children, Hasikos said this only happened in exceptional cases.
However there were at least two such cases already this year where women detained were forcibly separated from their young children. One was a baby just 19 months old, the other was aged three. The children were handed over to social services. One of the women had been held for four weeks.
Hasikos also rejected the accusation that Cyprus implemented a routine policy of detention for the purpose of deporting asylum seekers.
“This only applies to a small number of cases where such foreigners are already prohibited immigrants usually because they’ve been convicted of a criminal offence,” he said.
“If the application is justified on the grounds of international protection or humanitarian reasons, the person is granted all of the rights recognised by the law,” he added.
The minister said he would make further comments once Amnesty issued a full report.

By Angelos Anastasiou
THE semi-state electricity company EAC on Tuesday denied reports it was hindering the process for the supply of natural gas as an interim solution in a bid to stifle competition.
“These reports are unfounded and misleading,” the EAC said in a statement, adding that it has already expressed its readiness to co-operate with all relevant departments in the effort to import natural gas.
The so-called interim solution calls for the importation of natural gas to facilitate cheaper power production as a stopgap until local resources become available, from 2016 to 2024, with an optional extension period to 2026.
State gas company DEFA, currently designated the sole administrator of natural gas in Cyprus, would be the importing party and would then sell on the gas to competing power companies.
It has asked any companies interested in being supplied with natural gas during the interim period to provide it with binding figures for their gas needs, which will form the basis for their contract with DEFA.
Daily Phileleftheros reported that while Power Company Cyprus Ltd (PEC) – a private entity licensed to operate a 230MW power plant in Vassilikos – has expressed its readiness to proceed, going as far as providing DEFA with its projected gas quantity needs in writing, the EAC insists on the list of concerns it raised three months ago, demanding that they are addressed before proceeding.
In a letter to Energy minister Giorgos Lakkotrypis last December, the authority had cited risks and uncertainties in the provisions of the interim solution that could “jeopardise its viability,” like competitors being allowed to import cheaper gas while the EAC’s hands would be tied by its contract with DEFA. It asked that the Cypriot gas market be declared ‘emergent’ by the government, securing protection against cheaper gas.
The EuroAsia Interconnector, a proposed project that would connect the Israeli, Cypriot and Greek power grids to mainland Europe’s, was also listed as a potential threat to the power company as it would facilitate the import of electricity to Cyprus. The company demanded either government assurances that electricity would not be imported during the interim period, or a price renegotiation clause in its contract with DEFA.
Further contingencies, like the expansion of renewable energy sources or a more severe economic contraction in Cyprus, would result in diminished consumption needs, the EAC claimed. Such possibilities rendered estimations of gas quantity needs – required by DEFA to proceed to the interim solution – highly risky, the EAC said, and reiterated the need for a renegotiation clause in its contract with the state gas company.
According to Phileleftheros, while the government looks favourably towards alleviating some of these concerns, it considers the EAC’s attitude a concealed effort to overturn the interim solution strategy, with a view to being allowed to import gas itself, a move it feels will stifle prospective competitors.
The paper also cites sources saying that Lakkotrypis plans put the weight of the President’s office behind the interim solution strategy, arranging a meeting – most likely scheduled for Monday – between Nicos Anastasiades, the EAC, and DEFA in order to overcome any obstacles.

TOURISTS arrivals in February increased by 6.9 per cent compared with February 2013, figures released Tuesday by the Statistical Service showed.
According to the results of the Passengers Survey, arrivals of tourists reached 45,227 in February 2014 compared to 42,327 in February 2013.
An increase of 6.2 per cent was recorded in tourist arrivals from the United Kingdom (from 15,232 in February 2013 to 16,172 in February 2014).
However, a decrease of 4.4 per cent in tourist arrivals was recorded from Greece (6,254 in February 2014 compared to 6,540 in February 2013) and 0.3 per cent decrease from Russia (4,084 compared to 4,098 last year).
For the period January – February 2014 arrivals of tourists totalled 85,903 compared to 84,613 in the corresponding period of 2013, increasing by 1.5 per cent.
On the basis of the results of the survey, 70,209 residents of Cyprus returned from a trip abroad in February 2014 compared to 60,076 in the corresponding month last year, recording an increase of 16.9 per cent.

AUTHORITIES on Tuesday issued a fresh warning concerning the potential dangers associated with digital currencies as parliament called on the government to put the necessary safeguards in place to protect the public.
In a joint statement, the ministries of trade and finance, and the Central Bank warned that people could lose their money by investing in digital currencies like Bitcoin.
Digital currencies can be bought directly from a peer or through an exchange platform, they said, adding that one such platform collapsed recently, costing investors a lot of money.
“There is no specific legal protection in the event of an exchange platform losing money or collapsing,” the statement said.
Authorities said the digital currency could also be stolen by hackers while its value could fluctuate rapidly or even be wiped out.
There was also a high risk of it being used in criminal activities, including money laundering, the statement said.
The warning follows discussion of digital currencies by the House Trade Committee, which called on the government to put a framework in place to protect the public.
“As a state, we ought to seek the framework of safeguarding all citizens as well as all those who trade in Bitcoin,” DISY MP Kyriacos Hadjiyiannis said.
MPs heard that Cypriot authorities were waiting for the EU to decide on the matter.
Meanwhile, people must be “extra careful and keep themselves informed before making their choice,” DIKO MP Angelos Votsis said.
Bitcoin is a peer-to-peer digital currency that functions without a central authority. Known as a crypto-currency, because it uses cryptography in the creation and transfer of money, it first introduced in January 2009.
It is stored in anonymous ‘electronic wallets’, or code, and can travel from one wallet to another by means of an online peer-to-peer network transaction.
Last month a Central Bank statement said that bitcoin was not illegal.
The statement came as bitcoin marketers Neo & Bee were poised to launch their business here. Following a weeks-long media blitz, Neo & Bee opened its flagship branch in Nicosia last month. The company has already partnered with a number of businesses accepting payment in bitcoin, including So Easy Stores, LTV and Telemarketing.
Late last year the University of Nicosia became the first private university in the world to accept bitcoin as payment for tuition.
At the time, Dr Christos Vlachos, chief financial officer for University of Nicosia, said bitcoin was an inevitability that would eventually lead to significant innovation. “Digital currency will create more efficient services and will serve as a mechanism for spreading financial services to under-banked regions of the world. In this light, we consider it appropriate that we implement digital currency as a method of payment across all our institutions in all cities and countries of our operations,” he said.

THE chairman of the House Ethics Committee suggested on Tuesday that loan sharking legislation should be amended to include banks as more and more borrowers complain they are being ripped off while trying to restructure their loans.
Demetris Syllouris said restructuring a loan was a process of making it viable.
“It appears the opposite is happening,” he said, suggesting that banks were using this to pressure borrowers, raise the interest rates, and increase the collateral.
Speaking during a state television lunchtime news show, Syllouris said the committee had discussed the complaints on Tuesday morning, and has also looked into the law on loan sharking and profiteering – passed in 2011 – which exempts banks.
“My view is that an amendment must be submitted to include banks,” he said. “They must realise that a free market is free and must be free but there are rules. Some cannot have more freedom than others.”
The committee heard from the state legal service that restructuring a loan did not mean re-evaluation of the mortgaged property.
Banks should have considered all the risks at the time of processing the application, a state attorney said.
“The borrower is not responsible if real estate values have dropped,” DISY MP Andreas Kyprianou said.
Kyprianou said banks could not use restructuring as an excuse to re-evaluate properties and force borrowers to put up more collateral.
“The aim is to overcome this recession with the lowest possible cost and not mortgage all the people’s properties,” he said.

Chelsea moved into the Champions League quarter-finals with the minimum of fuss by brushing Galatasaray aside with a comfortable 2-0 second-leg win at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday for a 3-1 aggregate success.
Chelsea took command of the last 16 tie after four minutes when Samuel Eto’o scored with a low shot after a lovely piece of skill by Eden Hazard cut the Turkish side open, while Gary Cahill smashed in the second just before halftime.
Chelsea then smothered the match with Frank Lampard offering a tireless midfield screen and their John Terry-led defence in total command.
It was a frustrating return for former fans’ favourite Didier Drogba, who was greeted with a great welcome before kickoff and even gave Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho a kiss, but failed to make any headway as the visitors slipped out of the competition without once testing home keeper Petr Cech.
Galatasaray had not won in eight previous visits to English clubs, drawing three and losing five, and the odds of them ending that streak lengthened considerably with the early goal that settled the hosts.
Hazard produced a neat touch and turn on the halfway line and sent Oscar clear down the right. The Brazilian crossed low for Eto’o who swept in a low shot that keeper Fernando Muslera got a hand to but could not keep out.
The goal quietened the travelling fans, who had brought some welcome noise and colour to their corner of the ground, and Chelsea’s experience kept the Turkish supporters subdued as the home side remained calmly in control of a stop-start first half punctuated by endless free kicks.
If the first goal was the product of Chelsea’s international brigade, the second was fashioned from traditional British beef as Terry headed a Lampard header goalwards and, after Muslera parried, fellow centre back Cahill slammed the loose ball gleefully into the roof of the net.
In the evening’s other match Real Madrid stormed into the quarter-finals with a club record 9-2 aggregate success after Cristiano Ronaldo struck twice in a 3-1 win at home against Schalke.
Real were virtually assured of a place in the last eight after thrashing the Bundesliga side 6-1 in Gelsenkirchen in the first leg and coach Carlo Ancelotti rested a host of regulars for the return at the Bernabeu with an eye on Sunday’s La Liga “Clasico” against Barcelona.
Gareth Bale set up Ronaldo for Real’s 21st-minute opener and Schalke levelled 10 minutes later when a long-range Tim Hoogland effort deflected off Sergio Ramos and bounced past the stranded Iker Casillas.
Ronaldo took his tally in this edition of Europe’s elite club competition to 13 goals with his second of the night in the 74th minute. Alvaro Morata added a third for Real a minute later after a Ronaldo effort came back off the crossbar.
It was Real’s biggest aggregate Champions League win after beating APOEL Nicosia 8-2 in 2011-12.

A tremor of magnitude 3.6 shook Limassol lightly on Wednesday morning, according to the Geological Survey department.

In a written statement, the centre reported that the epicentre at sea 20 km south of Akrotiri, Limassol, at a depth of 5 km.

The 8.55am quake was felt by some Limassol residents.

The situation is being monitored by the department, the statement said.

Three people were arrested by Paphos police on Tuesday on suspicion of theft, assault and battery and resisting arrest.

According to a police spokesman, two women and a man – the husband of one of the women – were arrested following a complaint filed by a 62-year-old woman from Stavrokonnou, Paphos, that the suspects robbed her.

The 62-year-old said she had been walking in the street when she was approached by the two women, who ostensibly wanted to talk to her.

Instead, they allegedly grabbed her golden cross and chain and fled the scene aboard a waiting car.

The woman reported the incident to police and a Paphos CID team that happened to be in the area investigating a different case spotted the suspects’ vehicle on the old Limassol to Paphos motorway, and managed to cut it off near the Xeropotamos area.

Police said the three suspects resisted arrest.

The couple also had their child with them in the car.

They were arrested and detained, but subsequent searches of the vehicle did not produce the items allegedly stolen.

Real estate broker and property investor Kypros Kyprianou, 55, was sentenced to two years in prison for fraud on Wednesday.

Kyprianou, the director of Famagusta Developers,  had been charged with selling the same property – a flat – in Paralimni twice in June 2010, collecting the amount of €100.000 from one buyer and €30.000 from another.

The court ruled that the defendant’s criminal record – which included a 1990 conviction to six years in prison over a similar case – warranted little lenience and handed Kyprianou a two-year jail sentence while imposing a €1.000 fine on Famagusta Developers.

The offence of fraud and the repeated pattern of intentional double-selling for profit were driving factors in the ruling, according to judge Evi Antoniou.

“His plan victimised the two plaintiffs, and many others, and his professional conduct has discredited Cyprus abroad”, the judge said in her ruling.

Kyprianou had made headlines in 2010, when police put him on the stop list – banned from leaving Cyprus – as eight complaints for fraud had been filed against him, according to a police spokesman at the time.

This was just one of several cases against Kyprianou, filed against him by Cypriot and foreign buyers of his properties.

He is also facing multi-million lawsuits from various construction companies he had used.

In 1980 the defendant had set up Kyprianou Estates, and was reported to police for selling the same property twice.

Kyprianou  fled the island before the police investigation was complete but was arrested in Germany and extradited to Cyprus where he was jailed. He was released in 2000 and set up business again.

The cabinet decided to Wednesday to launch privatisation procedures for Limassol port, around two weeks after parliament gave the green light.

The privatisation process, deputy government spokesman Victoras Papadopoulos said, involved granting a long term licence or right to use or manage the port’s commercial arm.

The extent and manner will be decided at a later stage with the help of experts, the spokesman said.

The decision came around two weeks after parliament approved an umbrella bill on privatisations, which had been fiercely opposed by unions.

A roadmap for privatisations had been drafted by the government in December last year.

Based on the roadmap, the first organisation slated for privatisation is state telecommunications company CyTA.

However, Papadopoulos said, it had been judged that the port was more suitable at this point.

The main organisations slated for privatisation are CyTA, the ports, and the power company, EAC.

Privatisations are part of terms in the island’s €10 billion bailout agreement. Cyprus must raise €1.4 billion through privatisations between 2016 and 2018.

By Jeffrey Heller

Israel launched air strikes on Wednesday against Syrian military sites in response to a roadside bombing that wounded four of its soldiers, but both sides signalled they were not seeking further escalation.

The Syrian army, embroiled in a civil war, said one soldier was killed and seven were wounded in the air raids on three targets. Although Damascus condemned the Israeli attacks, it stopped short of any direct threat of retaliation and affirmed its focus on defeating insurgents.

Israel, by announcing the air raids, as opposed to its official silence about past strikes on arms from Syria believed destined for Lebanon’s Hezbollah guerrillas, appeared intent on delivering a message of deterrence to President Bashar al-Assad.

“Our policy is clear. We hurt those who hurt us,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told his cabinet in public remarks.

“Syrian elements not only allowed but also cooperated in the attacks on our forces,” he said, and by taking military action now the Jewish state wanted to ensure calm was re-established along its northern frontier.

The attack came less than a month after Hezbollah accused Israel of carrying out an air strike on one of its bases on the Lebanon-Syria border. It vowed at the time to respond.

In Tuesday’s violence, a bomb was detonated near an Israeli patrol along a fence between the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights and the part of the strategic plateau under Syrian control. One of the four wounded soldiers was in critical condition.

Although suspicion in Israel fell on Hezbollah, Israeli leaders did not point a finger directly at the Shi’ite Muslim group, which is allied with Assad in battling a three-year-old rebellion against his rule led by Sunni Islamist insurgents.

While the Syrian army has a presence in the Golan, some areas are controlled by the rebels fighting to topple Assad, including al Qaeda-inspired militants hostile to the Jewish state. Israel has voiced concern that it will increasingly become a target during and after the Syrian conflict.

ISRAEL WARNS OF “HEAVY PRICE”

“We hold the Assad regime responsible for what happens in its territory and if it continues to collaborate with terrorists striving to hurt Israel, then we will keep on exacting a heavy price from it and make it regretits actions,” Israeli Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon said.

Netanyahu, in his remarks to the cabinet, also alluded to Israeli air strikes against weapons shipments, saying Israel had taken action during the Syrian conflict to “thwart, as much as we can, the transfer of arms by sea, air and land”.

But Amos Yadlin, a former chief of Israeli military intelligence, said there was “no desire for escalation” on Israel’s part, noting the air force was capable of carrying out attacks far more dramatic than Wednesday’s pre-dawn strikes.

The Israeli military said targets of the latest air strikes had included a Syrian military headquarters, a training facility and artillery batteries on the Syrian-held side of the Golan.

Occasional spillover violence on the Golan from the Syrian civil war has often drawn Israeli return fire against Syrian positions, ending what had previously been a stable ceasefire between the foes since the 1973 Middle East war.

“There is no spillover here,” Yadlin told Army Radio, referring to the roadside bombing.

“When the other side changes the rules of the game, Israel has to make clear it carries a very high price. I think Assad understands the price,” said Yadlin, who heads Tel Aviv University’s Institute for National Security Studies.

Israel captured the Golan from Syria in 1967 and annexed it in a move not recognised abroad. The wounding of the soldiers on the strategic plateau marked Israel’s worst casualties there since the start of Syria’s conflict in 2011.

By Fredrik Dahl and Parisa Hafezi

Iran and world powers locked horns on Wednesday over the future of a planned Iranian nuclear reactor that could yield plutonium for bombs as the United States warned “hard work” will be needed to overcome differences when the sides reconvene in April.

The meeting in Vienna was the second in a series that the six nations – the United States, China, Russia,Germany, France, Britain – hope will produce a verifiable settlement on the scope of Iran’s nuclear programme, ensuring it is oriented to peaceful ends only, and put to rest the risk of a new Middle East war.

This week the two sides endeavoured to iron out their positions on two of the thorniest issues: the level of uranium enrichment conducted in Iran, and its Arak heavy-water reactor that the West sees as a possible source of plutonium for bombs.

They appeared to reach no agreements and said only that they would meet again on April 7-9, also in the Austrian capital. However, Tehran’s foreign minister voiced optimism that their July 20 deadline for a final agreement was within reach.

The broad goal is to transcend ingrained mutual mistrust and give the West confidence that Iran will not be able to produce atomic bombs while Tehran - in return – would win full relief from economic sanctions hamstringing the OPEC state’s economy.

Iran denies that its declared civilian atomic energy programme is a front for developing the means to make nuclear weapons, but its restrictions on UN inspections and Western intelligence about bomb-relevant research have raised concerns.

“We had substantive and useful discussions, covering a set of issues, including enrichment, the Arak reactor, civil nuclear cooperation and sanctions,” European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashtontold reporters after the two-day session.

The United States has called on Iran to scrap or radically alter the as yet-uncompleted reactor, but Tehran has so far rejected that idea while hinting it could modify the plant.

“We shared with Iran ideas that we have,” a senior US administration official told reporters condition of anonymity. “We have long said that we believe that Arak should not be a heavy water reactor as it is, that we did not think that that met the objectives of this negotiation.”

Enrichment is also a sticking point in the talks. “It’s a gap (on enrichment) that’s going to take some hard work to get to a place where we can find agreement,” the US official said.

Enriched uranium can serve as fuel for nuclear power plants or, if refined to a high degree, for the core of an atom bomb.

As in past rounds of negotiations, the US delegation, led by Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Wendy Sherman, held an 80-minute bilateral meeting with the Iranian delegation. Such high-level, face-to-face contacts between the long estranged countries – virtually unthinkable one year ago – have become almost “routine”, according to the US official said.

IRANIAN OPTIMISM

Western nations want to ensure that the Arak reactor is modified sufficiently to ensure it poses no bomb proliferation threat. Iran insists that the desert complex be free to operate under any accord as it would be designed solely to produce radio-isotopes for medical treatments.

“The Arak reactor is part of Iran’s nuclear programme and will not be closed down, (like) our research and development activities,” Foreign Minister Javad Zarif told reporters.

Possible face-saving options that could allow Iran to keep the reactor while satisfying the West that it would not be put to military purposes include reducing its megawatt capacity and changing the way it would be fuelled.

Iran and the powers aim to wrap up a permanent accord by late July, when their trailblazing interim deal from Nov. 24 expires and would need to be extended, complicating diplomacy.

Zarif voiced optimism about the talks. “At this stage we are trying to get an idea … of the issues that are involved and how each side sees various aspects of this problem,” he said. A Western diplomat also said the purpose of the current round of negotiations was not to nail down a final agreement.

Asked whether he expected the negotiating deadline to be met, Zarif said: “Yes, I do … I am optimistic about July 20.”

The sides are conscious that it may be hard to reach gradual deals without having the overall picture in sight and are insisting that “nothing is agreed until everything is agreed”.

Much of the progress so far has been achieved since last year’s election of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, a relative moderate who launched a policy of “constructive engagement” to end Iran’s international isolation.

“Our ultimate goal is to maintain our peaceful nuclear programmes in line with international rules, and at the same time remove all concerns of the international community,” the semi-official Fars news agency quoted Rouhani as saying. “So far we are satisfied with the results and hope that the whole dispute will be settled soon with goodwill of the other side.”

Since Rouhani’s rise, day-to-day relations between Iranian and six-power negotiators have greatly improved. Some senior officials now address each other by their first names and use English in talks, rather than going through onerous translation.

“Everybody is very professional, very serious, very focused. There are no histrionics, there is no walking out, there is no yelling and screaming … People understand the stakes are pretty profound,” the senior US official said on Wednesday.

But gaps between expectations on both sides, and their own internal divisions, could still scupper diplomacy.

Both the US and Iranian delegations – the two pivotal players in the negotiations – face intense pressure from hawkish critics back home. In Washington, a large majority of US senators urged President Barack Obama to insist that any final agreement state that Iran ”has no inherent right to enrichment under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty”.

That would be a non-starter for Iran, which cites a right under the NPT to produce nuclear energy for civilian purposes.

The powers will also want to spread out the sanctions relief over years, or possibly decades, to ensure they maintain their leverage over Tehran and that it honours its end of the deal.

Iran has already suspended its most sensitive, higher-grade enrichment – a potential pathway towards bomb fuel – under the November accord and won modest respite from sanctions.

By Angelos Anastasiou

THE period from 2004 to 2013 saw 229 motorcyclists killed in road accidents, some 30 per cent of all fatal victims, despite representing a small fraction of motorists, the chief of traffic police Demetris Demetriou said on Wednesday.

He said that “unfortunately, not a day goes by without a victim of a road crash involving motorcyclists,” adding that “sometimes the motorcyclists are at fault, but in most cases the drivers are to blame, either because they don’t pay attention to motorcyclists, or because they cut them off, and in a few cases both are to blame.”

But regardless of who is to blame, Demetriou said, “in all cases the price is paid by motorcyclists because they are most vulnerable and most exposed to danger.” He also expressed concern over the fact that “the primary cause of road accidents that prove fatal to motorcyclists is driving under the influence of alcohol.”

“That is why a bill was tabled in parliament in 2010 drastically reducing the maximum alcohol limit on learner drivers, professional drivers and motorcyclists,” he added.

Demetriou announced the launch of joint efforts with the ‘Drasis’ Federation of Bikers’ Clubs and the Reaction group relating to road safety, aiming at educating, sensitising, and raising awareness, both among motorcyclists and drivers.

According to Demetriou, the efforts begin with the 14^th Journey of Love of the Cyprus Association for Children with Cancer and Related Diseases “One Dream One Wish”, which will be held from Thursday to Sunday.

Specifically, police motorcyclists escorting the campaign, as they have done for several years, along with volunteers from the ‘Drasis’ bikers’ federation and Reaction, will distribute educational posters created for the campaign, to villages and towns they pass through.

Further, Demetriou said, in the context of the nationwide educational campaign, educational fliers containing useful advice and tips on how to avoid road crashes will be distributed to busy spots and main road arteries.

He explained that “the slogan of the campaign is that in any given instance we do not know who is behind the helmet – it could be a friend, a brother, someone close. Which is why we must always respect and pay attention to motorcyclists,” and thanked all contributors for their willingness to cooperate.

‘Drasis’ coordinator Jimmys Angelidis said that the ten biker clubs that are joining forces in this year-long campaign participate in the Journey of Love every year.

The aim of the campaign, he said, is on the one hand to create a better culture among drivers with regard to motorcyclists, and on the other for motorcyclists themselves to protect themselves.

“One Dream One Wish” head Yiorgos Penintaex expressed the foundation’s support to the bikers’ campaign, adding that the foundation pays back a little of what it owes the motorcyclists who participate in the Journey of Love every year.

“Behind the helmet is someone close to us, but also a volunteer who helps suffering children,” Penintaex said, wishing the campaigners the best of luck.

Reaction group’s head Marios Stavriou, said that “it is now widely accepted, internationally, that of all road accidents involving motorcyclists, only 15-20 per cent can be blamed on the motorcyclists themselves.”

He added that “usually drivers of other vehicles bear the responsibility for collisions, but many times they can be attributed to the road network, and so motorcyclists need to protect themselves appropriately.”

“It is a shame that most victims of road crashes in hospital right now are motorcyclists”, Stavrou said. He concluded that “together, we can make the impossible seem easy.”

On behalf of Minerva insurance, Kostakis Koutsokoumnis said that the company is covering the campaign’s expenses, contributing to its success.

By Constantinos Psillides

THE cabinet slashed the CyBC budget for 2014 by €300,000, following a suggestion by Interior Minister Socratis Hasikos, to punish the state broadcaster’s board for not presenting their budget on time and not adhering to stricter austerity policies.

“I instructed the cabinet to cut a further €300,000 from the CyBC budget to send a message. I expect that next year they will comply and not delay so much that the state finds itself before a budget that is fait accompli,” the minister said.

The CyBC budget, along with that of other semi-government organisations, is brought before the cabinet for approval before being presented to the House plenum for a vote. Since CyBC already operates within its budget the government cannot make drastic changes.

Hasikos scolded CyBC on spending, saying that while private businesses are cutting back on expenses, CyBC is increasing them. The minister cited an example of increased spending on fees for legal advisors, audit services and insurance expenses. “In the budget there is a €20,000 item for guest hospitality,” he said.

Asked whether the cutback could result in layoffs, the minister said that he never mentioned layoffs, adding that “where they can make do with less money, without firing staff, they should do so.”

The CyBC budget for 2014 is €30.5m, of which €24.3m is from state coffers. The budget is down 8 per cent or €3.48m from the previous year.

Hasikos also criticised the board on their revenue projections, saying that they are “overly optimistic”. CyBC executives expect €6m in revenue this year, mainly advertisements during the World Cup in Brazil in the summer.

“I hope they get the revenue they are expecting so we won’t face any more problems. My guess is that they won’t. The ad revenue is overly optimistic,” the minister said, claiming that the reason CyBC managers inflated their projected revenue is not to have to resort to more cutbacks.

Hasikos told the press that he had asked for a 40 per cent cut on programming expenses but CyBC only cut expenses by 1.5 per cent.

The Interior minister added that CyBC management cannot rid itself from past mentalities.

“The CyBC cannot act as if the financial crisis isn’t their problem. We are trying to avoid firing people, so CyBC management should have been more sensitive when it came to financial matters,” he said.

THE Cyprus-based NGO, “Hope for Children” UNCRC Policy Centre, has teamed-up with 12 other European organisations to establish the European Cultural Learning Network (ECLN), a project funded by EU’s Lifelong Learning Programme, over the period to September 2015.

ECLN partners have conducted research into each country’s specificities regarding the contexts in which cultural learning occurs.

Cultural learning in Cyprus, from the participants’ point of view, needs to be more inclusive and address broader audiences, and should be developed outside formal education settings. The growth of the sector is small and slow, blocked by lack of funds, but it should be nurtured particularly in a time of crisis and social challenges.

By Toby Davis
Robin van Persie’s hat-trick lifted Manchester United to a stunning Champions League comeback against Olympiakos Piraeus on Wednesday as Borussia Dortmund edged out Zenit St Petersburg to complete the quarter-final lineup.

United, trailing 2-0 from the first leg, won 3-0 at Old Trafford to stay in the hunt for a fourth Champions League title and last season’s runners-up Dortmund lost their second leg 2-1 but went through 5-4 on aggregate.

Van Persie cut a forlorn figure as United suffered a humbling defeat by arch-rivals Liverpool in the Premier League on Sunday, but he was back to his lethal best as he picked apart the Greek side who have now lost all 12 matches they have played in England.

The Dutch striker opened the scoring after 25 minutes from the penalty spot after being shoved in the back by Jose Holebas and levelled the aggregate score with a simple tap-in in first-half stoppage time.

Van Persie raised the roof when he curled home a free kick seven minutes after the restart, but the tension around Old Trafford lasted until the final whistle with Olympiakos pushing for an away goal that would have swung the tie in their favour.

Dortmund had done the hard work by winning 4-2 in Russia but the tie threatened to come alive when Zenit forwardHulk beat two men and drilled his team into a 16th-minute lead on the night in Germany.

Dortmund captain Sebastian Kehl settled any nerves when he headed in from close range seven minutes before the break and Zenit never looked like stealing an unlikely win, despite Jose Rondon heading them back in front with 17 minutes remaining.

United and Dortmund joined Chelsea, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Paris St Germain, Bayern Munich and Atletico Madrid in the quarter-finals. The draw for the last eight is on Friday.