Cyprus attorney general appeals acquittal of 5 Israelis in alleged rape of UK tourist

Cyprus’s Attorney General George Savvides filed an appeal on Thursday against last month’s acquittal of five Israeli men accused of raping a British tourist in Ayia Napa, Hebrew media reported.

In late March, a district court in Cyprus found the defendants not guilty of an alleged gang rape, dismissing all charges — including rape, forced sexual intercourse, sexual harassment, and abduction — and ordering their release after a year and a half in jail.

In September 2023, a 20-year old British tourist accused the five men, all residents of the Arab Israeli town of Majd al-Krum in the Galilee, of abducting her from the pool area of a hotel, forcing her into a hotel room, and raping and abusing her until she managed to escape.

The defendants confirmed there had been a sexual encounter, but insisted it had been consensual.

According to Philenews, the English website of local newspaper O Phileleftheros, the court ruled that the complainant’s account “lacked coherence and contained numerous substantial contradictions,” both internally and when compared to other reliable witnesses, including hotel employees, guests in an adjacent room, and her close friend.

On Thursday, the woman’s lawyer, Michael Polak, welcomed the decision to appeal the verdict.

“Obviously she was very disappointed with the acquittals of the men after bravely traveling back to Cyprus to give evidence,” Polak told Sky News. “The decision of the attorney general to appeal their acquittals is welcome. The appeal process in Cyprus is long and slow, but she still hopes to achieve justice at the end of the process.”

Earlier in April, Polak rebuffed claims that his client invented the allegations.

“The young lady in this case is gay; any suggestion that she voluntarily agreed to group sex with men she had never met before, who were speaking in a different language, is ridiculous,” he told the Guardian.

The defendants’ attorney, Nir Yaslovitzh, told Ynet on Thursday morning that the attorney general’s appeal was baseless.

“The court clearly ruled that the complainant fabricated her complaint and did not believe her,” he said. “The appeals court cannot, per the law, overturn a decision that relates to the complainant’s credibility.”

“We must all wage total war on sexual offenses, but fend off attempts to file false complaints that try to exploit this. I am sure of my clients’ innocence,” he continued.

The Israelis have since returned to Israel and are unlikely to return to Cyprus for the discussions regarding the appeal.