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Refugees end 鈥榗ruise鈥 in Cyprus
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HUNDREDS of mostly Syrian refugees rescued by a cruise liner in the Mediterranean agreed to disembark in Cyprus yesterday after a standoff triggered by their demand to go to Italy.
A total of 345 migrants were plucked from a trawler in rough seas off the coast of Cyprus on Thursday.
About 700 cruise passengers disembarked from the Salamis Cruise Lines vessel at the port of Limassol, police said, but only 65 of those rescued initially left the ship on Thursday.
The situation was resolved shortly before dawn yesterday after hours of negotiations, said interior ministry official Marinos Papadopoulos.
“Everything went calmly,” he said.
Medical and other teams were on hand to assist the refugees at the port, where camp beds were set up for them.
They were “all in good health,” said Limassol harbour master George Ppouro.
Buses then took the refugees to a camp for migrants and asylum seekers near the capital Nicosia. The camp has sleeping tents, bathrooms and kitchens, Cyprus Red Cross Director Takis Neophytou said.
“They are not considered illegal. They are free to go,” said Neophytou, adding that some have family in Cyprus.
“The refugees had come from Syria and had each paid US$5,000 for passage to Italy. But the captain (of the trawler) abandoned them in the middle of the ocean (and) a heavy storm. They were left on their own on the boat,” he said.
There are 60 women and 52 children among the refugees, he said.
The cruise ship answered a distress signal from the trawler, the defense ministry said. A passenger from the liner said she had heard the refugees had been at sea for three days.
“The captain of their boat made a phone call and a speed boat came and took him away,” said Chrystalla Eflatsoumis.
She said there were “many pregnant women and 20 babies.”
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