Cyprus police question suspect in security probe

Cypriot police are questioning a 24-year-old man arrested last week who may have been plotting an attack on Israeli tourists visiting the Mediterranean island, media reported Saturday. The man, thought to be a Swedish passport holder of Lebanese extraction, was arrested July 7 and was being detained following remand hearings held behind closed doors, Sigma TV reported. He has not been charged with any offence. Police spokesman Andreas Angelides said: "We can confirm the arrest of a 24-year-old foreign national for specific, serious offences, and who is in custody by order of the court." Sigma TV's web portal reported the man had been tracking the movement of Israeli tourists on the island, while Cypriot newspaper Phileleftheros said he was attempting to pinpoint areas frequented by Israeli tourists and the busses they used. His reported July 5 arrival on the island also coincided with Cyprus assuming the presidency of the European Union, an event marked by the gathering of a host of EU officials and commissioners on the island. A government source said the arrest took place following information from foreign intelligence agencies. "It is not clear what, or whether there was a target in Cyprus. That is under investigation," a senior government official told Reuters. Officials say Israel's diplomats have been targeted in several countries in recent months by bombers Israel linked to Iran and its Lebanese guerrilla proxy Hezbollah. Tehran has denied involvement. Cyprus lies just west of Syria and Lebanon but has been largely unscathed by the violence and upheaval rattling the Middle East. Its last major security incident was a botched car bomb attack on the Israeli embassy in the capital Nicosia in May 1988 which killed three people.