Cyprus: Turks fire warning shots at Greek-Cypriot boat, no injuries

Sep 27, 2010, 18:46 GMT

Nicosia - Turkish patrol boats on Monday fired warning shots at a Greek-Cypriot fishing boat off the coast of northern Cyprus, the Cypriot Foreign Ministry said, adding that it had informed the United Nations of the event.

The shots were fired in international waters east of Cape Apostolos Andreas, which is located on the northern half of the long- divided Mediterranean island.

The government in Nicosia said it was investigating the incident, which did not lead to any injuries.

There have been no violent incidents of this kind between the two sides - the Turkish and Greek Cypriots - for more than 10 years.

The two parties have been holding intensive talks on reunification since 2008, though these have not as yet yielded any results.

Cyprus has been part of the European Union since 2004. However, this only applies to the Greek part of the island.

The country was split in 1974 following a Greek coup and Turkish military intervention.