North Cyprus reopens contentious ghost town with Turkish support
Days before Northern Cyprus holds elections, Ankara backed the reopening of a ghost town in the island’s green zone in a polarizing move that could influence voter turnout.
ISTANBUL — Cypriots wandered freely amid ruined hotels and derelict homes Oct. 8 in the abandoned resort of Varosha, also known as Maras, for the first time since the area was sealed off 46 years ago.
Wedged in the island’s prohibited green zone following a 1974 Turkish military incursion that split Cyprus among mostly Greek and Turkish ethnic lines, Varosha has been the subject of reunification talks and property disputes ever since.
