U-turn in the investigation into the assassination attempt in Cyprus: After the local police initially focused on investigating criminal elements in the Russian mafia behind the assassin caught near Teddy Sagi's offices in Nicosia, now the most likely possibility is that it was indeed an attempted attack on Israelis, on a nationalist basis.
The breakthrough came after the arrest of a 27-year-old resident of Paphos, a Pakistani citizen whose name appeared on the cell phones seized by the Azari assassin.
Unlike Azari, who is still silent during his interrogation, the Pakistani, who served as food messenger, appears to be cooperating with his interrogators.
It was also revealed that the Azari assassin was in possession of the uniform of a food courier of the company where the Pakistani worked, which was suspected to be intended to help the assassin move around freely without arousing suspicion.
According to a report on the Pilenews website, apart from the clear statement of the Israeli government that the Azeri actions were in fact an attempted attack against Israelis in Cyprus, further evidence was identified that it was a terrorist attack against Israelis on the island.
The attack was planned to take place on a Muslim holiday, "the intention was to carry out a terrorist attack intended to convey a message," the source told the island police.
However, officials in the Cyprus police are still saying that all directions of the investigation are being investigated.
Cypriot policemen in Nicosia (archive), Photo: AFP
The detention of the Pakistani food courier was extended by eight days yesterday.
According to the suspect, he was an active partner of the Azeri assassin: on one of the Azeri cell phones, several calls were recorded to the Pakistani's phone and from him, "This could not be accidental," a police source said.
The fact that the facsimile provided Azri with a messenger uniform also shows that he was an active partner in the assassin's plan.
