A couple detained in Cyprus since February 26 on suspicion of activity against Israeli targets was deported yesterday as an ‘imminent threat’ to the Republic.
The 28-year-old Azerbaijani man and 27-year-old Estonian woman had arrived on the island three days earlier. After their arrest, they were held for 14 days under two successive detention orders. Yesterday, the Aliens and Immigration Service escorted them to Larnaca Airport, from where they flew to a European city en route to Estonia.
The development suggests that police failed to gather sufficient evidence for criminal court prosecution. Nonetheless, serious questions surround the case.
According to classified intelligence, the 28-year-old was identified as an Iranian agent directed by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. He reportedly travelled to Iran twice during 2025, and physical surveillance revealed that he had been photographing premises linked to Israeli interests in Paphos, Limassol, and Larnaca.
Investigators are examining whether the photographs were sent to a handler abroad. Classified Cypriot police intelligence linked the 28-year-old to the same ‘mastermind’ who allegedly recruited the 44-year-old Azerbaijani with a British passport — the man arrested in Cyprus in June 2025 who faces terrorism and espionage charges.
A notable detail: the couple reportedly filed a complaint on February 25 claiming they were being followed by two individuals, even calling the emergency number 112. Yet one day later, they themselves became the subjects of investigation.
