Newsroom
The ferry that sank off Kyrenia reportedly left port despite its destination in Turkey being closed because of bad weather, raising disturbing new questions about why the journey was allowed to begin.
Nine people have now been confirmed dead, and another 19 remain missing following the sinking of the Filo Jet, which was carrying 267 passengers and crew from occupied Kyrenia to Tasucu in southern Turkey.
According to a report in Politis, evidence presented during proceedings in a so-called court in the occupied north indicated that Tasucu port had closed because of the dangerous weather conditions.
Testimony attributed to the vessel’s second captain claimed that the decision to depart was made by the captain. The proceedings also reportedly heard that the crew had been warned about the possibility of water entering the ferry.
The captain has maintained that conditions were considered suitable when the vessel left Kyrenia. He reportedly said the ferry began taking on water during the journey for reasons that have yet to be established and that passengers were assisted once the emergency became clear.
For anyone who regularly boards a ferry, tour boat, or pleasure craft in Cyprus and Greece, the revelations strike at the most basic expectation of maritime travel: that those responsible will not sail when the conditions, or the port at the other end, make the journey unsafe.
Nine suspects, including the company director, captain, second captain, chief engineer, second engineer, and crew members, have been questioned in connection with the disaster. They are reportedly being investigated on suspicion of causing death through negligence and carelessness.
Blood and urine samples were also taken from the suspects for alcohol and drug testing, with the results still pending.
Meanwhile, search teams continue trying to locate the 19 missing passengers. A body recovered from the wreckage area raised the confirmed death toll to nine, while autopsies found that the victims examined had died from drowning.
Disaster spills into politics
The sinking has also shaken the administration in the occupied north.
Erhan Arikli was removed from his position as the so-called transport minister amid growing scrutiny over the ferry’s documentation, inspections, and permission to operate.
His settler-backed Rebirth Party, or YDP, subsequently decided to withdraw from the coalition “government,” according to Politis.
Arikli said he had already offered to seek the lifting of his political immunity before being informed by “prime minister” Ünal Üstel that he would be removed to allow the investigation to proceed unhindered.
He claimed his party had considered leaving the coalition for some time and said the administration should have called elections earlier. However, he said he would avoid further public statements while families continued waiting for news of the missing.
The political maneuvering does little to answer the central question facing grieving relatives: If the Turkish port was already closed because of the weather, why did a passenger ferry carrying hundreds of people leave Kyrenia at all?
Investigators must now establish who knew what before departure, whether warnings were ignored, and whether the tragedy could have been prevented.
