Egoza razor wire has not been enough - government procedures are currently underway to hire 300 special police officers on contract to guard the buffer zone to reduce migration. Appropriate funds have been allocated and a meeting was held at police headquarters on Tuesday to plan processes so that vacancies can be announced. If all goes according to schedule, the hiring process will begin in early 2023.
Special Police Officers will receive one month of accelerated training at the Police Academy in handling weapons, making arrests and dealing with people on the move. They will then receive their equipment, vehicles and uniforms. The special forces will be assisted by soldiers guarding posts in the buffer zone. The creation of a special unit is one of three measures the government is promoting to reduce migration.
Egoza razor wire has already been installed in various parts of Nicosia, which has not been as effective. This is not surprising, since barbed wire itself cannot protect anyone - a comprehensive protection system is needed, including surveillance, signaling and security guards. For this, a video surveillance system was purchased from an Israeli company, which will be installed next month and will monitor areas of the buffer zone. When it detects people trying to get through the Egoza razor wire into government-controlled areas, it sends a signal to the special police unit to intervene.