Nicosia - The President of the Cypriot House of Representatives, Mr Spyros Kyprianou, extended his "sincere sympathy" yesterday to victims of the earthquake that left more than 3,000 dead and 16,000 injured in Turkey.
"Our thoughts are with the ordinary people who are suffering,' he said in a statement, but added that "one should not forget that Turkey continues to occupy 37 per cent of Cyprus' territory."
"Our opponent is the official Turkish state and its expansionist policies," he said. "One cannot disregard the fact that Ankara is responsible for many crimes against the Republic of Cyprus and its people, including ethnic cleansing."
Cyprus has been divided since Turkey occupied its northern third in 1974 following a Greek-inspired coup in Nicosia aimed at uniting the island with Greece.
"In spite of all these [crimes], one cannot be glad with the human drama of the people of Turkey in the earthquake-stricken areas. On the contrary, we feel sincere sympathy for the victims of this disaster," Mr Kyprianou said.
Cyprus is often shaken by lesser earthquakes, including a 4.8 tremor on Tuesday