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Was the catamaran that sank off Kyrenia properly licensed to carry passengers, and who allowed it to sail in rough seas?
Those questions are now at the heart of growing anger over the disaster after a vessel certificate published by Erhan Arikli, the so-called transport minister in the occupied north, reportedly appeared as “invalid” when checked through the issuing organization's system.
Journalist Nazar Eriskin said she entered the certificate number shared by Arıklı into the Türk Loydu database, which returned the document’s status as “INVALID.” When she asked Arıklı to explain, she said she did not receive a clear answer.
The document’s status does not by itself explain when or why it became invalid. However, it has intensified demands for authorities to disclose exactly what inspections were carried out, whether the vessel had valid certification when it sailed, and who approved its final journey.
Questions have also been raised about the captain’s certificate, reportedly issued in Honduras, and the procedure through which it was checked and accepted. Arıklı has not provided a satisfactory explanation, according to the journalist.
Reports further suggest the catamaran was subject to speed restrictions and was not authorized to operate in rough seas with waves of 3 meters or higher. It remains unclear whether those limits were followed.
For anyone in Cyprus who boards a ferry or puts their children on one, these are not minor technicalities buried in paperwork. Passengers assume the boat has been inspected, the captain’s qualifications have been checked, and someone will stop it from sailing if the sea is too dangerous.
Anger turns toward transport chief
Pressure is mounting on Arıklı as relatives of the dead and missing demand answers and accountability.
He reportedly claimed during a television appearance that someone had encouraged the families to call for his resignation, prompting an angry response on social media.
“People who have no news from their families and do not know the fate of their loved ones, do they need someone to incite them?” one commenter wrote. “This is not just shameless. It is a complete lack of humanity.”
For the families, the debate is not political theatre. Some are burying children, while others are still waiting beside their phones for news that may never come.
A 14-year-old buried, her father still missing
Fourteen-year-old Nisha Torrer, who died in the sinking, was laid to rest in Gaziantep on Tuesday.
Her brothers, 10-year-old Yunus and 11-year-old Yusuf, survived and have been discharged from the hospital. Their father, Ferdi Torrer, remains among the missing.
A family relative, Mustafa Chan, said Ferdi had taken his children to visit their aunt in the occupied north during his summer leave. The catamaran sank as they were returning home.
“We want those responsible to receive the harshest punishment,” he said. “Many families have been lost, children have died. All of Turkey is devastated. This is everyone’s pain, not only ours.”
The children had already lost their mother, Gunes Torrer, to cancer about four years ago. Some reports suggest their father tried to save his children as the vessel went down but was unable to save himself.
“Please find my mother”
Also missing is 58-year-old Elmas Demir, a mother of five from Eskisehir who had worked at a hotel in the occupied north for the past two years.
Her daughter, Ozge Demir, said she saw her mother during a video call as she boarded the vessel. They spoke again at about 11:30 p.m., but contact was lost shortly afterward.
“Please find my mother,” she said. “We are desperate. My mother is there, and my father is devastated.”
Her son, Uğur Demir, said he had sent her money to buy the ticket one day before the sinking.
“She boarded the ship, spoke to my father, and after that we never heard from her again,” he said. “She is not among those pulled from the sea. Her name is among the 20 missing.”
Another son, Cemal Demir, said he believed he heard his mother screaming in footage of the disaster and saw her reaching out as the vessel sank.
Young man disappeared while helping children
Turkish Cypriot media have also reported the story of 20-year-old Suleyman Erdogan, one of two Turkish Cypriots listed among the missing.
According to his sister, Erdogan was leaving the catamaran when he saw two girls in danger. He reportedly took one child to safety before going back for the second.
As the vessel began to sink, he handed the child to someone nearby. He has not been seen since.
The 20-year-old had reportedly travelled to Turkey to surprise his girlfriend.
The latest toll from the sinking stands at eight dead and 20 missing. Specialist Turkish vessels and remotely operated equipment are searching the catamaran’s wreck, which was located at a depth of about 550 meters.
The ferry was travelling from Kyrenia to Tasucu in southern Turkey when it issued an SOS shortly after leaving port. Hundreds of people were rescued, but the cause of the sinking has not been officially established.
As investigators examine the wreck, the paperwork may prove just as important as the evidence on the seabed: Was the vessel legally and safely operating, were warnings ignored, and could this tragedy have been prevented?
