The curtain is set to fall – at least at first‑instance level – on the widely discussed case involving the Al Jazeera undercover video about the citizenship‑by‑investment programme implemented by the Republic of Cyprus. On Tuesday, 17 February, former President of the House of Representatives Dimitris Syllouris and former AKEL MP Christakis Giovanni will hear the decision of the Nicosia Criminal Court on the serious charges they face. It is a case that left a deep mark on Cypriot society, caused political tremors and turmoil, and dealt severe – if not irreparable – damage to the credibility of the state. The criminal proceedings began in the summer of 2022 and, after preliminary objections, legal battles, postponements and reversals, the process concludes on Tuesday.
The original indictment included the names of Dimitris Syllouris, Christakis Giovanni, lawyer Andreas Pittadjis and Antonis Antoniou (an executive in Giovanni’s company). As the case unfolded, charges were withdrawn for different reasons, and both Pittatzis and Antoniou were removed from the indictment. Only Syllouris and Giovanni remained in the dock.
Legal sources told Politis they are also awaiting the Criminal Court’s decision, adding that attention now turns to how – and to what extent – the withdrawal of charges against Pittadjis will affect the court’s judgment, given that the case had initially been built by the prosecution as a chain of interlinked events. In any scenario, whether the ruling is one of conviction or acquittal, the court’s reasoning will carry particular importance.
The lingering “this is Cyprus”
Regardless of the outcome, the phrase “this is Cyprus” continues to haunt the entire saga of the Al Jazeera video. Regardless of who uttered it in this particular incident, the troubling reality is that it remains embedded in the Cypriot vernacular – seen as the phrase that encapsulates how laws and procedures can be bypassed to “get things done”, and that everything has its price.
And while logic would suggest that, after 2020 and the Al Jazeera investigation into the citizenship programme, Cyprus would not again witness a similar story fuelled by a “this is Cyprus” mentality, the recent “videogate” affair – starring close associates of President Christodoulides and coming to light about a month ago – served as a stark reminder that the roots of this mindset are deeply entrenched across the entire Cypriot system.
Key milestones
12 October 2020: Al Jazeera publishes an undercover investigation into Cyprus’ investment‑for‑citizenship scheme. The 57‑minute video, titled The Cyprus Papers Undercover, remains available on Al Jazeera’s official YouTube channel.
13 October 2020: AKEL’s Political Bureau accepts the resignation of Christakis Giovanni from both his parliamentary seat and party posts.
15 October 2020: Dimitris Syllouris resigns as President of the House of Representatives and as an MP under the weight of public outrage sparked by the video.
July 2022: The case is filed at the Nicosia District Court with the aim of referring it to the Criminal Court.
12 September 2022: The four defendants appear for the first time before the Nicosia District Court, which orders their referral to stand trial directly before the Criminal Court.
June 2023: The Nicosia Criminal Court suspends the proceedings, and the case is re‑filed. The initial case was withdrawn due to a change in the composition of the bench.
October 2023: Lawyer Andreas Pittatzis – who represented Antonis Antoniou – is acquitted of all charges.
March 2025: Antoniou is also removed from the indictment after a key prosecution witness refuses to testify at trial.
December 2025: With the closing submissions of the defence lawyers and the prosecution representative, the hearing stage of the Al Jazeera trial concludes.
17 February 2026: The Nicosia Criminal Court will announce its verdict for the two former state officials who remain charged.
The other cases
The Al Jazeera case is the third to reach completion at first‑instance level relating to the citizenship‑by‑investment programme. The first case, involving the naturalisation of three Iranian nationals and five individuals plus four legal entities, was heard by the Larnaca Criminal Court, which acquitted all defendants. The judgment was issued on 4 November 2022. They had faced charges including conspiracy to defraud, forgery and circulation of forged documents, obtaining registration by false pretences, providing false information, concealment of property, false certification and money laundering. The case concerned the naturalisation of Iranian national Mehdi Ebrahimi Eshratabadi as “Tony Newman” in 2017. Following an appeal by the Attorney General’s Office, the Court of Appeal ordered a retrial, which begins next Monday before the Larnaca Criminal Court.
The second case involved the exceptional naturalisation of Mohamed Mohamed Abdelrahman Mohamed Salem on an unknown date between 24 November 2017 and 13 November 2018, as well as his son Abdelrahman Mohamed Salem Bahaa and daughter Esraa Mohamed Abdelrahman Mohamed Salem. The Criminal Court acquitted all seven defendants: Photos Tsangarides, Michalis Zavos, Michalis Michael, the companies Larina Estates, PHC Tsangarides LLC, Fullserve Secretarial Ltd and Elli Michailidou. The indictment contained 18 charges. Two defendants were, however, found guilty on six tax‑related counts. The case stemmed from the report of the investigative committee on exceptional naturalisations, chaired by former Supreme Court president Myron Nicolatos. The Attorney General’s Office has filed an appeal in this case as well.
Fourth case in March
As for the fourth case pending before the Nicosia Criminal Court, the indictment includes eight individuals and two legal entities: Marios Demetriades, Andreas Demetriades, Dimitris Demetriades, Giorgos Demetriades, Eleni Simillidi, Jing Wang, Josef Friedrich Santin, Vasiliki Georgiou Santin, Andreas Demetriades & Co LLC and Delsk (Cyprus) Business Services Ltd. The indictment contains 59 charges, including conspiracy to defraud, corruption and money laundering. Before the Criminal Court, all defendants pleaded not guilty. The next hearing is set for 9 March 2026.