Cyprus to prevent more Syrian refugees from settling in Chloraka village following concerns of demographic change

CHLORAKA, Cyprus — The Cypriot Ministry of the Interior issued a decision prohibiting the resettlement of more Syrian refugees in the village of Chloraka near Paphos in Cyprus.

Interior ‌Minister Nikos‌ Gonoris, noting that 20% of village residents in Chloraka‌ are now Syrians, justified the decision as a necessary move to halt the demographic change in the village, reported the Cypriot Phileleftheros Newspaper.

The village is currently inhabited by 4,000 Cypriots and 1,300‌ Syrians, many of whom‌ have settled ‌‌in the past two years.‌

The newspaper reported that the rapid shift in demographic composition has raised communal tensions in the village.