NEWS

Cypriot foreign minister resigns, reports say

Cypriot Foreign Minister Markos Kyprianou is reported to have resigned in the wake of a massive explosion at a navy base on the island, which killed 13 people.

The state run Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation and the Cyprus News Agency quoted sources saying Kyprianou would contact President Demetris Christofias on Monday, informing him of his plans to resign.

He would became the second minister to resign after the fatal blast.

Defense Minister Kostas Papacostas stepped down last week, as did National Guard Chief Petros Tsalikidis.

There was no immediate confirmation of the reports.

Christofias’ administration is struggling to cope with the public outrage after the munitions blast, which ripped through a military base, knocking out Cyprus’s largest power station. The munitions, from Iran, were confiscated by Cyprus from a vessel sailing to Syria in 2009.

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