Election posters, mass tourism and property: Israel’s footprint in Cyprus

Various locations, Cyprus – This summer in Cyprus, on a road near Larnaca airport, a billboard greeted holidaymakers in Hebrew: “Israelis, enjoy! Now come back and win!”It was an election poster in the Cypriot city for Israel’s October 27 vote featuring Israel’s former army chief and leader of the opposition Yashar Party, Gadi Eisenkot.The poster of Eisenkot, believed to be the first time a foreign politician had campaigned on billboards in Cyprus, signalled the growing number of Israelis living on and visiting the island, TV presenter and pro-Palestine activist Melanie Steliou told Al Jazeera.“Israel is only 40 minutes away by plane; they can pop over, vote, and come back within the day,” she said.Israel does not allow most citizens living abroad to vote outside the country, so campaigns court those who can fly home on polling day.The poster demonstrates how Israeli politicians see Cyprus as “just another district of Israel”, Steliou said.Israeli political influence is also being felt in Cyprus’s parliament. On October 20, six Cypriot lawmakers formed a pro-Israel caucus, launched by the advocacy group Israel Allies Foundation, The Jerusalem Post reported.Cyprus has absorbed waves...