Cypriots fear Israel's growing influence over water, defence and energy
Israeli companies run desalination plants, air defences and a hospital in Cyprus, and some Cypriots told Al Jazeera they fear their country is ceding control of vital systems.
At a glance
- Israeli firms supply Cyprus's desalination, air defences and hospitals and hold a stake in its largest gasfield, Al Jazeera reports.
- Investors in Israel held 5.1 billion euros in Cyprus at the end of 2024, more than six times the 2017 level, per the Central Bank of Cyprus.
- Cypriots interviewed fear ceding control of vital systems, while the government calls the ties a security alliance against Turkiye.
Israel's reach in Cyprus now runs through some of the island's most essential systems — drinking water, air defence, healthcare and offshore gas — and several Cypriots told Al Jazeera they fear their country is handing another state control of systems it cannot live without.
Speaking in Nicosia and Limassol, Christos Achniotis, who was 16 when Turkish troops landed in Cyprus in 1974, said Israel is "trying to dominate as much as possible, land-wise, company-wise", as well as politically and militarily. Cyprus is strategically placed in the Mediterranean and just a 35-minute flight away, he said.
Water deals cross a line
Cyprus gets about 80 percent of its drinking water from the sea, and its desalination plants supply most of what comes out of its taps, according to the Water Development Department. Agriculture Minister Maria Panayiotou said in June that desalination would cover almost all domestic demand by next year.
Mekorot, Israel's state water company, has joint ventures with Cypriot firm Netcom that run two of the island's five permanent plants, at Larnaca and Episkopi, the department says. In August, Mekorot signed a memorandum with the Nicosia District Water Board to help manage water and sewerage in the capital.
For Danae Laou, who works in hospitality in Limassol, the water deals crossed a line. "It's terrifying to see, but at the same time, we have no power," she said.
Mekorot is on the United Nations list of businesses linked to illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. Najla Abdellatif Vallander, a Swedish-Palestinian environmental advocate who founded Zero Waste Palestine, told Al Jazeera its operations there amount to "water theft" and "water apartheid". Mekorot had not responded to Al Jazeera's request for comment at the time of publishing.
Defence, gas and hospitals
Israel Aerospace Industries, a state-owned arms maker, is supplying Cyprus's new Barak MX air defences, replacing Russian-made systems, with deliveries beginning in late 2024. Israeli special forces have trained in the Troodos mountains, whose terrain resembles southern Lebanon, according to Israel's Institute for National Security Studies, and in 2022 the two armies held their largest joint exercise yet, simulating a war with Hezbollah, The Jerusalem Post reported.
Investors in Israel held 5.1 billion euros ($5.7bn) in Cyprus at the end of 2024, more than six times the 2017 figure, according to the Central Bank of Cyprus. Israel's economy is about 15 times Cyprus's and its military spending about 73 times, World Bank figures show. NewMed Energy owns 30 percent of the Aphrodite gasfield, and the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange is weighing a bid for the Cyprus Stock Exchange, which the government is privatising.
Hadassah Medical Centre Limassol, the Israeli hospital group's first centre in Europe, began seeing patients in July and was formally opened on Thursday.
Political friction
Cyprus's government presents the ties as a security alliance against Turkiye. On Tuesday, the pro-Israel advocacy group Israel Allies Foundation launched a caucus of six Cypriot lawmakers from three parties in Nicosia; its president, Josh Reinstein, called Turkiye a "common adversary", according to the Cyprus Mail. The opposition party AKEL called it "extremely provocative".
Writer Ioanna Lamprou said Cypriots who feel the world has forgotten the occupation may "become more sympathetic to Israel", but "don't understand that what's happening in the West Bank is illegal occupation as well". Achniotis said: "I think it can happen to anyone."
Source: Al Jazeera.
Questions and answers
- How is Israel involved in Cyprus's water supply?
- Mekorot, Israel's state water company, runs two of Cyprus's five permanent desalination plants through joint ventures with Cypriot firm Netcom, and in August signed a memorandum with the Nicosia District Water Board.
- Why do some Cypriots oppose closer ties with Israel?
- They say Cyprus is handing another state control of systems it cannot live without, and point to Mekorot's UN listing over links to illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.
- What military ties exist between Israel and Cyprus?
- Israel Aerospace Industries is supplying Cyprus's Barak MX air defences, Israeli special forces have trained in the Troodos mountains and the two armies held their largest joint exercise in 2022.
