The North Cyprus News on the front page of Cyprus Today on 11th July 2020 consists of two stories. One is about a child who will die in three weeks unless they receive a stem cell donation and the other story is about the fact that visitors who skipped quarantine to come shopping in North Cyprus don’t want to invest £300m in the marina project after all.
FRONT PAGE
Virus rules out help for baby Liya – THE parents of a desperately ill baby have launched a worldwide search for a blood stem cell donation after being told that their child may have just three weeks to live — and although the family are Turkish, corona virus restrictions mean the people of North Cyprus cannot help.
In February, after a series of tests, 18-month-old Liya Gümüşöz was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) a rare and aggressive type of cancer which affects one in 3,100 people. Doctors have now told the family that Liya must receive a blood stem cell donation by the end of July if she is to beat the disease.
But the Kemal Saraçoğlu Foundation for Children with Leukaemia and Cancer, which contributes to the international database of donors, has had to tell the family that the corona virus restrictions prevent them from seeking a donor here.
Marina project — ‘Start again’ – Plans to build a 300-million Euro marina and hotel at the western end of the Lapta coastal path were thrown into disarray this week after the mayor revealed that NEITHER of the two chosen bidders had come forward with the necessary deposits to proceed.
The flagship project was at the centre of a major political storm last month, after a private jet carrying a party representing the Anex international tourism group was allowed to land at Ercan airport without proper health checks or quarantine.
THE REST
New travel rules: Difficult to keep up, says BRS – PASSENGERS arriving from the UK will need to undergo a seven-day quarantine period as well as three PCR tests, after new immigration rules were introduced this week. But the constant rule changes for travellers attracted criticism and there could be more – with further revisions likely in August, government sources have said.
The changes, which will come into force on Thursday (July 16), were passed by the Health Ministry’s Contagious Diseases Senior Committee, after the cabinet handed control of the issue to Health Minister Ali Pilli. He announced on Thursday that there were a total of seven Covid-19 positive test cases following flights and ferry crossings from Turkey.
Honour for Lars – A FORMER UN Peacekeeper, who was sent to jail for helping Turkish Cypriots in 1964, has been honoured for his part in an infamous siege. Swede, Lars Willy Lindh, was granted honorary membership of the Erenköy Freedom Fighters Association.
Mr Lindh was in charge of 40 UN peacekeeping soldiers in the Erenköy region in August and September of 1964 when Greek Cypriots attacked the strategic village. The little harbour on the north west coast was being used to import food, aid and weapons from Turkey, following a Greek Cypriot onslaught on Turkish Cypriot villages. Hundreds of Turkish Cypriot students flocked to the village to defend it, many risking perilous sea journeys. The siege was lifted after Turkey sent a warning air strike over the area.
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