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61. Syllouris declines questions in passport probe

A former Cypriot parliamentary speaker secretly filmed in an expose on a now discredited cash-for-passports scheme declined to answer questions on Wednesday into his role in a scandal which rocked the island nation...

62. Stars in Al Jazeera video face committee

63. Director wants passport probe clear his name

A civil servant, whose name was dropped by the former House speaker during a secret video recording by Al Jazeera, says he did not get involved with golden passports during his tenure as director of the interior ministry, vowing to take legal action if an investigative committee failed to clear his name...

64. Interim report on golden passports delivered

An interim report on the golden passport scandal in the Republic of Cyprus says just over half of citizenships granted by the executive branch were not approved lawfully...

65. Gloves are off again over golden passports

Cyprus’ auditor general told a House committee this week that the Cabinet used old rules to approve over two hundred golden passports after the cutoff date for an investigation ordered by the attorney general, who pushed back on the criticism saying there was 'no bottom to the abyss'...

66. Cyprus hurries to clean up company registry

Energy Minister Natasa Pilides has called on business stakeholders in Cyprus to embrace a new effort of recording and updating true information about beneficiaries of companies, saying a new digital registry can bolster transparency on the island...

67. Damning State Dep. report highlights Cyprus human rights issues

A US State Department country report on human rights practices in 2020 proved damning for Cyprus which was found to have had significant human rights issues last year....

68. Defying clampdown, Cyprus activists to protest again over graft

Anti-corruption campaigners in Cyprus will protest again on Feb. 20, they said on Tuesday, after a violent clampdown by police at an event on Feb. 13 drew widespread condemnation....

69. Former AG says he cautioned over passports

The state’s former attorney general says his department had cautioned the government years ago that the country’s golden passport scheme might have been incompatible with European law, essentially contradicting the executive branch's position that nobody had said anything...

70. Cyprus president testifies on golden passports

Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades is expected to testify on Tuesday before the independent committee probing corruption allegations in the country’s golden passport scheme, just days after he lashed out at critics during a national address on the fight against corruption...

71. 15 law firms being audited for involvement in 'golden passports'

Interesting new details on the involvement of law firms in the island’s disgraced citizenship-by-investment programme were presented before the Investigative Committee by the head of the Cyprus Bar Association, Christos Clerides....

72. Lawyer says Al Jazeera took him out of context

Cypriot attorney Andreas Pittadjis, who was targeted in an Al Jazeera undercover investigation into allegations of corruption over golden passports, took to social media to reiterate his position he did nothing illegal, accusing the foreign network of being dishonest...

73. Reporters to sit in on golden passport hearings

A number of reporters will be allowed from now on to attend ongoing probe hearings into alleged corruption in connection with Cyprus’ disgraced Citizenship by Investment Programme, with journalists being asked to commit in advance not to breach data privacy laws...

74. Cypriot FM visits Gulf before US inauguration

Cypriot Foreign Minister Nikos Christodoulides flew to the United Arab Emirates on Monday to hold a private meeting with his counterpart, days after the two countries signed a military cooperation agreement but also days before a changing of the guard in Washington could spell trouble for US arms sales to Gulf states...

75. Top editor quits over Anastasiades claim

A renowned journalist and editor-in-chief at Kathimerini Cyprus has resigned his post amid backlash from a piece he wrote on Sunday, where he claimed Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades let slip information that he had been flying millions generated from golden passports to the Seychelles on private flights...

76. Redacted report on golden passports published

A redacted version of the Kalogerou report on golden passports is expected to be made public on Tuesday afternoon, amid criticism of the government from opposition parties calling for transparency in probing corruption allegations...

77. DIKO raises conflict of interest for AG

DIKO president Nicholas Papadopoulos has raised concerns over conflicts of interest for the state’s attorney general in connection with a golden passports investigation, following a statement from the Presidential Palace on publicizing some findings but not in their entirety...

78. Cyprus’ passport probe dispute widens

Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades and DIKO party leader Nicholas Papadopoulos took their disagreement over probing golden passports to a whole new level this week, while questions remained over the independent committee’s reassurances of transparency in the investigation...

79. Police focus on Larnaca in passport probe

Police in Larnaca carried out searches on Tuesday in connection with an ongoing criminal probe into golden passports, with reports saying investigators were focusing on at least five persons of interest but were not calling them suspects...

80. Cyprus asked to clarify passport probe impasse

The Cypriot government says it will comply with a request from an international organization of audit institutions, which asked to hear the administration’s view over the golden passports probe impasse after the state’s auditor sought support from the global network...

81. Golden passport findings hard to come by

The president of the Cyprus Bar Association says he has received adequate information from the audit office in connection with golden passports, adding that other agencies and officials have refused to share their findings citing direct orders from the interior minister...

82. FinMin confirms Cyprus won’t reinstate ‘golden passports’ scheme

Finance minister Constantinos Petrides assured that the government will not be reinstating the Cyprus Investment Program (CIP), that was shut down after the shocking corruption revelations that emerged through an Al Jazeera investigation and the subsequent stark criticism by the European Commission. ...

83. State budget up in the air over golden passports

Opposition parties are cranking up the pressure on Interior Minister Nikos Nouris, who has been refusing to hand over files in connection with the golden passports scandal, with the Democratic Party making good on its promise not to vote the state budget later this month if there is no transparency...

84. President says anti-corruption measures to be announced by year's end

The new anti-corruption measures will be announced to the public before the end of the year, President Nicos Anastasiades said Wednesday, noting that the delay is due to the government’s efforts to take into account the suggestions of all stakeholders....

85. Government ups rhetoric against auditor

The Cypriot government hinted over the weekend it might refer the auditor general to the Supreme Court over “indecent” behaviour, after the audit office published yet another damning report alleging offences in a Cabinet decision to grant investor passports to individuals linked to a casino project without meeting the criteria...

86. Al Jazeera turns attention to Jho Low

Cypriot-naturalized citizen Jho Low, the Malaysian fugitive financier whose golden passports came under scrutiny last year, was back in the news this week after Al Jazeera published a video with actual voice recordings of 'the biggest fish' seeking a way out of the 1MDB colossal scandal...

87. Al Jazeera video stirs privacy debate

The former speaker of the House is reportedly calling on the chief of police to investigate two Al Jazeera journalists, saying they violated his rights when a hidden camera was used to capture footage that became part of the network’s corruption investigation known as The Cyprus Papers...

88. Comprehensive anti-corruption proposals in the pipeline

President Nicos Anastasiades will soon be presenting a package of proposals for the strengthening of transparency, accountability and the rule of law, deputy government spokesman Panayiotis Sentonas said Monday....

89. Cypriots to protest over golden passports probe

A new demonstration will take place outside the Presidential Palace on Friday, with protesters gathering to express their frustration over the government’s handling of the golden passport scandal and demand that officials take ownership of the crisis...

90. Passport committee shuns media over COVID

The special investigative committee probing the passport scandal in the Republic of Cyprus cited the pandemic this week after banning reporters from hearings, while it was unclear how Thursday’s additional COVID measures would further affect media coverage...