Within the space of just a few days, two women in Cyprus found themselves facing the most extreme form of gender-based violence. In Limassol, a police officer shot his wife with his service weapon before taking his own life. The woman remains in critical condition. In Strovolos, a man attacked his wife and mother-in-law before fleeing, while the woman, a recognised victim of domestic violence, reportedly had the ELPIS application installed on her mobile phone but did not have the chance to use it.
The two cases have once again raised a question that cannot be answered by expressions of outrage alone: how early is danger identified before violence escalates to the point of attempted femicide?
The recent incidents did not occur in a vacuum. According to police data, 17 femicides were recorded in Cyprus between 2020 and 2025, while two attempted femicides have already been recorded in 2026. At the same time, 300 women and 347 children required accommodation in support facilities for victims of violence across Cyprus during 2025 alone.
Behind these figures lies the crucial question of what comes next. Do the tools currently available to the state function as a genuine prevention system, or are they activated only once violence has already reached a critical stage?
The ELPIS application, shelters, protection orders, legal aid and training programmes for frontline professionals are necessary measures. The question is whether they are sufficient to identify escalation early enough, protect victims and shift responsibility to where it belongs: the perpetrator and the danger they may pose.
It was not sudden
Representatives of relevant organisations insist that an attempted femicide or femicide is not a sudden, isolated event. In most cases, it is the final stage of a pattern of escalating violence, control, intimidation and abuse.
Suzanna Pavlou, director of the Mediterranean Institute of Gender Studies, commenting on the Limassol case, stressed that violence should not be presented as an understandable reaction to difficult circumstances or financial problems. Such circumstances may constitute risk factors, she noted, but they are not the cause of violence.
Particular significance has also been attached to a phrase the alleged perpetrator in Limassol reportedly uttered when asked by a witness to release the woman he was holding by the neck.
"Leave. She's my wife."
For Pavlou, this was not an expression of love but of ownership. It reflects a belief that someone has the right to decide even over the life of a partner or spouse.
A similar point was made by SPAVO scientific director Andri Andronikou, who told Politis that violence, particularly when expressed in such extreme ways, is not something that happens in an instant. Rather, it develops over time through a belief that the perpetrator has the right to control the victim.
It is not a momentary loss of control but the culmination of a violent situation that was neither recognised nor addressed early enough.
This is also where the debate is now shifting. The issue is not only how to protect women who report violence, but also what happens when they do not.
In the Limassol case, according to information made public so far, there had been no previous reports of domestic violence. As Pavlou noted, that does not absolve the state of responsibility. Instead, it raises the question of why some women never reach the point of making a complaint and what authorities can do to prevent such situations before they reach that stage.
The button is not enough
The Strovolos case highlighted the limitations of the ELPIS application in the clearest possible way. The woman reportedly had the Cypriot panic-button app installed on her phone but did not have the opportunity to activate it.
This does not diminish the value of the application. It does, however, reveal the limitations of a tool that assumes a victim will be able to react during a moment of immediate danger.
Pavlou noted that the application is useful but cannot, on its own, be the solution, particularly during moments of crisis. As she pointed out, this is not the first time a woman facing immediate danger has been unable to press the emergency button in time.
Her observation shifts responsibility from the victim to the protection system itself. A woman fighting for her safety cannot have her survival depend solely on whether she can reach her phone at the critical moment.
According to figures provided by the police, 458 women have downloaded the ELPIS application since it was launched on July 14, while authorities have received a total of 30 calls through the app. Evi Nicolaou, head of the Vulnerable Persons Management Sub-Directorate, said the application serves as an additional communication channel for situations in which victims are unable to call the police directly.
The broader question, however, is what happens beyond the button.
In the Strovolos case, according to information reported publicly, an arrest warrant had reportedly been pending against the suspect since February following complaints of domestic violence. This raises another difficult question. How is risk assessed when warning signs already exist? How is a suspected perpetrator monitored? And how safe is a victim when protection relies largely on their ability to alert the authorities at the crucial moment?
The Mediterranean Institute of Gender Studies has proposed examining additional measures for monitoring offenders, such as electronic bracelets or other technological tools already used in other countries. Such systems would allow authorities to determine whether an offender is violating restrictions, approaching a victim or creating conditions of immediate danger.
The logic, according to advocates, is straightforward. Responsibility for raising the alarm cannot rest solely on the woman at risk.
Measures with gaps
The discussion takes on an additional dimension when the alleged perpetrator is a member of the security forces or someone with access to a service weapon.
Andronikou noted that domestic violence does not discriminate according to profession and can involve anyone. However, when the alleged perpetrator is a police officer, has access to weapons or exercises public authority, risk management requires greater vigilance and stricter implementation by the state.
The issue is not about discrediting an entire institution. It is about trust in public institutions and citizens' sense of safety.
Many victims already struggle to report violence. When the alleged perpetrator is a uniformed officer, that fear may become even greater. Fear that they will not be believed. Fear that the perpetrator has connections. Fear that he will learn they attempted to seek help.
According to Andronikou, there have been cases in the past where victims seeking to file complaints were turned away from police stations. This does not negate the work carried out by the police, but it demonstrates why specialised mechanisms, continuous evaluation and greater sensitivity during first response remain necessary.
At the same time, the state points to a range of measures that have either been implemented or are under way. The National Coordinating Body for the Prevention and Combating of Violence Against Women has already provided training to approximately 200 frontline professionals and plans to train around 100 police officers across Cyprus.
Work is also under way on a Unified Database for gender-based and domestic violence, which is expected to be completed during 2027. The aim is to improve the recording of incidents and help authorities design more targeted policies.
