Newsroom
Authorities and parents are moving swiftly to tighten security at Aglantzia Gymnasium after a violent incident during a weekend school event reignited concerns about student safety.
The confrontation occurred Saturday night during a welcome party for students, teachers, and parents at Platy Aglantzias. According to Andreas Pierides, president of the school’s Parents and Guardians Association, several young individuals unconnected to the school arrived at the event, one of whom punched a student in the nose. When the student’s parents intervened, the attacker allegedly summoned relatives, and six people reportedly assaulted the student’s father.
Police confirmed that two individuals of Syrian origin and the student’s father were initially taken into custody for questioning and later released. The investigation remains ongoing, with authorities emphasizing that two minors detained on Monday were not linked to the incident.
Education Minister Athina Michaelidou called the attack “a very serious incident of violence,” while stressing that it did not constitute “school violence,” as it occurred outside school hours. Still, she said the episode underscored the need to ensure that students “feel and are safe” during the school day.
To that end, the ministry is accelerating a program to install surveillance cameras at schools, including Aglantzia Gymnasium, alongside other measures such as increased guard presence and early prevention initiatives aimed at empowering students to report troubling behavior.
“While we do not want our schools to resemble prisons,” Michaelidou said, “we are obliged, due to recent events, to act.”
On Wednesday morning, school administrators and parent representatives were scheduled to meet with the head of the Nicosia Police Station to discuss further safety measures. Pierides noted that a series of smaller incidents in recent months had already eroded the sense of security on campus, adding that “the state must take proper measures to restore calm.”
