Turkish Cypriot ruling coalition party DP ‘MP’ Serhat Akpinar on Thursday called for the north’s authorities to close the island’s crossing points over the recent arrests and court cases regarding the alleged development of Greek Cypriot-owned land in the north.

“The United Nations’ representative [Maria Angela Holguin] is here … Attention must be drawn immediately. If southern Cyprus is taking illegal steps one after another, we need to bring this onto the agenda with the European Union and the UN,” he told the north’s public broadcaster BRT.

“All negotiations with southern Cyprus must be terminated. We must form our own national council. The crossing points must also be closed. The other side is filing lawsuits.”

His comments drew a swift response from opposition party the CTP’s foreign relations secretary Fikri Toros, who spoke to BRT later in the day.

“What will closing the crossing points and suchlike bring to Cyprus’ society? Is trade not dependent on the crossing points? Are we not at a point where we as Turkish Cypriots have employment opportunities, education, and health services thanks to the crossing points? Is freedom of movement not provided by these crossing points?” he asked.

“So, what are we trying to do? Are we going to isolate ourselves even more? Let them explain what kind of country they are designing.”

Akpinar’s comments come as the number of cases regarding the alleged illegal development of Greek Cypriot property in the north is on the rise, with two Hungarian nationals having become the first to be sentenced to prison over the matter last week.

They had admitted to promoting and advertising the sale of houses near Kyrenia on the internet.

Meanwhile, the case of a German national who reportedly spoke about selling property in the north to an off-duty police officer during a flight to Larnaca is ongoing, and arrest warrants were issued on Tuesday for four Turkish nationals in connection with developments in the Famagusta district village of Lefkoniko.

Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar had described the arrests as “acts of terrorism” and likened the moves to the violence faced by Turkish Cypriots in the 1960s, while the north’s ‘finance minister’ Erhan Arikli  had called for “revenge”.