Syrian civil war

UNHCR tells Cyprus to stick to the law in its efforts at sea to thwart refugee boats

The United Nations' refugee agency said Friday that Cypriot efforts at sea to stop numerous Syrian refugee-laden boats departing Lebanon from reaching the European Union-member island nation mustn't contravene international human rights laws or put passengers at risk.

Key US senator won’t block F-16s to Turkey after Biden assurances on overflights, other issues

US Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) released a statement on Friday saying he will not seek to block the sale of F-16s to Turkey after receiving assurances from the Biden Administration that it will monitor Turkey's behavior on a number of sensitive issues including its actions towards Greece.

Cyprus calls for EU rethink on Syria migration as refugee numbers rise

As record numbers of Syrian refugees reach the shores of Cyprus, the Nicosia government wants the European Union to consider declaring parts of their war-torn homeland safe to repatriate them to, the Cypriot interior minister said.

"Starting a discussion to re-evaluate the issue of Syria is crucial for us," Minister Constantinos Ioannou told Reuters in an interview.

One migrant dead, 18 rescued off Greek island

Greece's coastguard rescued 18 migrants and recovered the body of one dead woman on Friday after their boat capsized off an island in the Aegean Sea.

Coastguard vessels and a military helicopter carried out the rescue operation off the island of Agathonissi after the migrants sent a distress signal earlier on Friday, a coastguard official said.

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