The Defense Minister has received the report on the fire at the Kalo Chorio firing range. The Chief of the National Guard handed the report to Vasilis Palmas, and it is expected to be submitted to the Legal Service within the coming week.

“At this stage, I will limit myself to a thorough review of the findings and will not make any further comments, as the criminal investigation into the case by the Cyprus Police is ongoing.”
_{^{Vasilis Palmas – Minister of Defense}}

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The Minister of Defense made it clear that where responsibilities are identified, they will be assigned only after the criminal aspect of the investigation and the evaluation of all the evidence have been completed.

“Respect for the process, as well as the need to ensure the integrity of the criminal investigation, preclude public statements on matters that are the subject of the investigation.”
_{^{Vasilis Palmas – Minister of Defense}}

SEE ALSO: What the findings reveal about the fire at the Kalo Chorio Firing Range, including disciplinary actions against National Guard officers

In the event that criminal offenses are found, the final decision on whether to refer those involved to a court-martial will be made by the Attorney General. If the offenses are solely disciplinary in nature, they will be handled internally by the General Staff of the National Guard, as was the case with the loss of 13.6 kilograms of explosives last January, for which penalties were imposed on those involved.

However, according to information reported yesterday by Alpha, disciplinary responsibility appears to extend to a number of National Guard officers, even at higher ranks, both for the outbreak and the spread of the fire. The police’s criminal investigation is also continuing in full swing.

In any case, this incident appears to have served as a lesson for the National Guard, which, as Alpha has learned, following the tragic fire incident, decided to ban the destruction of ammunition at the Kalo Chorio and Sia firing ranges during thesummer months of July and August.

Watch Eleni Michael’s report: