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Suspected Russian-Made Missile Falls on Northern Cyprus


Turkish soldiers and police guard the area after an explosion pre-dawn, outside of village of Tashkent in Turkish Cypriot breakaway north part of the divided Cyprus, July 1, 2019.
Turkish soldiers and police guard the area after an explosion pre-dawn, outside of village of Tashkent in Turkish Cypriot breakaway north part of the divided Cyprus, July 1, 2019.

Turkish Cypriot officials say a stray Russian-made missile fell just outside Nicosia during Israeli airstrikes on Syria on Sunday.

The missile landed in Tashkent, about 12 kilometers from the capital, setting a field on fire but causing no injuries.

Officials suspect the missile was part of Syria's air defense system and was fired during Israeli airstrikes late Sunday.

Russia — Syria's biggest ally — supplies missiles to the defense system.

A Turkish Cypriot spokesman called it a "bad consequence" of war in the region, while the Greek Cypriots say there is no definitive conclusion about what caused the explosion.

Cyprus is split between a Turkish Cypriot north and the internationally-recognized Greek Cypriot south.

Efforts to reunify the island after 45 years have been unsuccessful.

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