The five men, aged 19 and 20, were arrested on Sunday after a 20-year-old British woman reported to police that she had been gang-raped in a hotel room.
On suspicion of rape, the Paralimni District Court decided to keep the Israelis in custody for eight days.
According to the police, the suspects will remain in custody to facilitate the investigation.
The CNA news agency reports that the men were arrested after hearing a witness whose statement matched the original accusation.
The Israelis and the British woman will undergo a medical examination, the Cypriot web media “Philenews” reports.
The news of these accusations echoes the events of four years ago, when 12 Israelis were charged and detained for the gang-rape of a British woman.
However, they were later released because the British woman withdrew the charges. She later claimed that the police forced her to do so.
In 2020, the 19-year-old woman was convicted of harming society. She was given a four-month suspended prison sentence.
In 2022, the Supreme Court, considering the appeal, canceled this verdict.
The defense lawyers explained that there was a departure from the norms of justice.
The police later announced that they would assess whether mistakes were made during the investigation.
Cyprus is a popular holiday destination for Israeli tourists.
Data for July show that Israelis are the second largest group of guests – 10.2% of the total number of arrivals. The British are in first place with 34.8%.
2023-09-04 15:55:40
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