Wildfire in Cyprus
By Elijah Mt. Castle
There is a large wildfire in northern Cyprus. Started by a vehicle fire it quickly spread to over 10,000 acres. Fire crews have been sent by Israel, Turkey, the UN, the UK, and the Republic of Cyprus to help fight the blaze. Cyprus has a rich history and complicated geo-politics. Cyprus had been settled and controlled by many different empires including the Greeks, Romans, Persians, and the Turks. Northern Cyprus is under the de facto control of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus(TRNC). This state is only recognized by one nation in the UN, Turkey. The TNRC declared independence in 1983 after a coup d’état in 1974 attempting to annex the island to Greece. This sparked the Turkish invasion of the northern island and the eviction of Greek Cypriots from the north. International sanctions on the state force it be economically dependent on Turkey. A United Nations controlled line divides the two areas for the reason of peacekeeping. Two British military bases exist on the southern coast of the island. The Republic of Cyprus in the south has lent firefighting aircraft to help fight the blaze. The Republic’s spokesperson referred to the assistance as “fire diplomacy”. The fire has threatened several villages in the area, but locals were able to carve fire-lines with tractors to prevent damage. Pictured are the VNF detections for June 22nd and 23rd, 2022. Also pictured is the VIIRS SNPP average radiances for June 22nd, 2022. The claimed area of the TRNC is pictured along with the Republic of Cyprus.
June 27, 2022