Cyprus detains 2 for smuggling after 24 Syrians land in boat

NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — Cyprus police have detained two men on suspicion of helping two dozen Syrian asylum-seekers reach the east Mediterranean island nation aboard a rigid-hulled inflatable boat. A court on Friday ordered the two men — aged 28 and 30 — held in police custody for eight days following their arrest a day earlier when the boat reached small harbor on the island’s northeastern coast. Police said the younger man is suspected to be the boat’s driver. Both face charges including aiding in unlawful entry into the European Union member country. Cyprus has the highest number of asylum applications per capita in the EU’s 27 nations.