The president of the KKTC Real Estate Agencies Union, Hasan Sungur, said Israelis are showing the greatest interest in KKTC land and homes after Turks. The country, which is recognized as an independent state only by Turkey on the international stage, is especially attractive to foreigners because of its high potential for tourism. Most of the foreign investors are rushing to northern Cyprus to snap up a share in the construction of hotel and other tourism complexes. Besides this inflow of capital in the form of foreign investments, foreigners are spending a sizeable amount of money to acquire land and real estate. Sungur indicates the current laws limit the foreign ownership of land to 5,000 square meters at most. This limit even applies to Turkish citizens because the investors coming from Turkey are also counted as foreigners, he added. The KKTC Estate Agent law that came into effect in January 2008 also renders it illegal for anyone other than a fully Government Registered Estate Agent to sell property. “However, foreigners are flouting the rules by purchasing lands through shell companies, which seem to have been established by KKTC local citizens,” he said.
Sungur draws attention to the fact that Israeli investors have recently increased the real estate purchases in the capital city of Lefkoşa and in Girne, especially the Esentepe district. In addition, Israeli companies are actively investing in a number of infrastructure projects in the KKTC. For example, the TAHAL Group International, an Israeli engineering company, has won a public tender to create a sea water distillation plant in Bafra and Gazimağusa. In Girne, there are five construction companies which have Israeli owners or partners. Sungur also said there are several thousand buildings constructed by Israeli companies in districts on the Karpaz Peninsula.
Speaking to Today’s Zaman, officials at the Cyprus Turkish Investment Agency (YAGA) say there are numerous Israeli companies investing in KKTC but say revealing the names of these companies is not allowed. In addition, prominent Turkish businessman Besim Tibuk, who chairs Net Holding and who was presiding over the Liberal Party, is said to be in talks with Israeli financers over a partnership in the construction of a holiday village in the KKTC.
Meanwhile, sources that asked to remain anonymous said 11 large companies from Israel were recently heading to the KKTC for investment purposes but had to cancel the trip because of harsh opposition from Greek Cyprus.
Foreign companies usually shy away from investing in the KKTC because of its dubious and wavering international situation as well as the lawsuits opened by Greek Cypriots. Already a member of the European Union, the Greek administration in the south claims it is the single legal representative of the entire island in the international community and Greek Cypriots are still claiming rights of possession on land that remained in the northern part after Turkey’s military intervention in 1974 to protect the Turkish population on the island from being massacred.
