The north’s supreme court on Monday ruled that a second remand order against the five Greek Cypriots arrested in the north in July – handed down by the civilian court in Trikomo – was illegal.

As such, the Greek Cypriots are now subject to no remand orders at all, but they will not be released until later this week at the earliest, with their lawyers set to make requests for bail at both the civilian court in Trikomo on Friday and at the military court in northern Nicosia on Wednesday.

It is now expected that at both courts, the five’s defence lawyers will present the supreme court’s findings and ask that their clients be released on bail.

Monday’s decision – a two-to-one ruling – strikes down the three-month remand handed down by the Trikomo court in July, with that remand having initially only applied to two of the five, but having then been extended to cover all five on August 21.

Presiding judge Beril Cagdal stressed that a remand order “should not take the form of a punishment for the defendants”, before saying that when remands are issued, the type of accusation, nature of the potential guarantors, and the type of penalty to be handed down in case of a guilty verdict must be examined.

On this matter, she was quoted by newspaper Ozgur Gazete’s editor-in-chief Pinar Barut as havingpointed out that the Trikomo court had found that the crimes of which the five stand accused at that court – privacy violations, trespassing, and breaching the peace – are “serious crimes”.

This, Cagdal said, is a “fundamental error”.

She then asked whether the list of title deeds found in the “blue folder” which the five had in their possession had been used for any commercial or professional purposes, with the case’s investigating officer answering in the negative.

Then, she said, “I do not understand why the investigating officer did not submit that list to the court as evidence”.

With all this in mind, she ordered the lower court overturn the decision and release the five on a bail of 100,000TL (€2,067), while also banning them from leaving the north for the duration of their trial.

Monday’s ruling came after the supreme court had ruled on Friday that a 13-day remand handed down at the military court in northern Nicosia during the early hours of August 2 was also illegal.

In that case, too, the court found the severity of the alleged crimes did not match the remand given, and that no testimony had been brought to support the accusation there was criminal intent on the part of the five regarding their entry into the north.

They will next appear at the military court for the continuation of their trial there, before returning to the Trikomo court for their next hearing there.

If both the military court and the civilian court agree to follow the supreme court’s guidance and overturn the remand orders, they could be released from custody as early as Friday, though they will remain on trial.

In northern Nicosia, the police and the prosecution allege that when the five crossed in one car from the British Dhekelia base through the Strovilia crossing point, near Famagusta, only four identity cards were handed over for inspection on the Turkish Cypriot side of the crossing point.

As such, one of the five Greek Cypriots has been charged with illegally entering the north, while the other four are accused of aiding and abetting the illegal entry.

In Trikomo, all five charges of privacy violations, trespassing, and breaching the peace.

The five Greek Cypriots deny all charges.