Charalambides rejects independence claims, Akel removes her from parliamentary group

Akel MP Irene Charalambides said on Tuesday her removal from the party’s parliamentary group was a unilateral decision by the leadership and accused it of undermining her character to fit a partisan narrative.

In a detailed public statement and subsequent social media posts, the veteran MP said she had “never expressed a desire to become independent” and stressed that she would retain her parliamentary seat.

“The decision to leave the parliamentary group was made by Akel’s leadership not I,” Charalambides insisted.