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| The island where thousands go to get married | The island where thousands go to get married |
| (about 9 hours later) | |
| Every year, 3,000 couples fly from the Middle East to Cyprus to get married. It's the easiest place to go if they want a civil ceremony rather than a religious one. | Every year, 3,000 couples fly from the Middle East to Cyprus to get married. It's the easiest place to go if they want a civil ceremony rather than a religious one. |
| A cheesy love song blares out from tinny speakers as a young couple nervously walk hand-in-hand past rows of empty seats in the Larnaca civil wedding hall. | A cheesy love song blares out from tinny speakers as a young couple nervously walk hand-in-hand past rows of empty seats in the Larnaca civil wedding hall. |
| Rachelle and Abdul Kader (pictured above) are Lebanese but they had to come to a foreign country to make the commitment of their lifetimes. | Rachelle and Abdul Kader (pictured above) are Lebanese but they had to come to a foreign country to make the commitment of their lifetimes. |
| In T-shirts and ripped jeans, the pair aren't dressed as your typical bride and groom and they exchange vows in English rather than their native language, Arabic. | In T-shirts and ripped jeans, the pair aren't dressed as your typical bride and groom and they exchange vows in English rather than their native language, Arabic. |
| I'm the only witness present to wish them "Mabruk! - Congratulations!" as they are declared man and wife by the registrar, and shyly kiss each other. | I'm the only witness present to wish them "Mabruk! - Congratulations!" as they are declared man and wife by the registrar, and shyly kiss each other. |
| Their love story is a common one in Lebanon - a country which has 18 officially recognised religious sects. Rachelle is a Maronite Christian and Abdul Kader is a Sunni Muslim. Neither wants to convert to their partner's religion and they feel that rules out a religious wedding. | Their love story is a common one in Lebanon - a country which has 18 officially recognised religious sects. Rachelle is a Maronite Christian and Abdul Kader is a Sunni Muslim. Neither wants to convert to their partner's religion and they feel that rules out a religious wedding. |
| "Of course, I would prefer to get married under the name of God, but we had no choice," Rachelle tells me. "We came here since we don't have civil marriage in Lebanon." | "Of course, I would prefer to get married under the name of God, but we had no choice," Rachelle tells me. "We came here since we don't have civil marriage in Lebanon." |
| An extraordinary number of foreign couples visit Cyprus for their weddings - about 3,000 fly in from the Middle East every year. | An extraordinary number of foreign couples visit Cyprus for their weddings - about 3,000 fly in from the Middle East every year. |
| Most of them are Lebanese and Israelis. They find a Greek Cypriot civil ceremony is quick and cheap and crucially it's legally recognised at home. | Most of them are Lebanese and Israelis. They find a Greek Cypriot civil ceremony is quick and cheap and crucially it's legally recognised at home. |
| "There are a hell of a lot of people around us who aren't allowed to have civil weddings and we're the first country of Europe they find," says Larnaca civil marriage officer, Michaelakis Mallas. | "There are a hell of a lot of people around us who aren't allowed to have civil weddings and we're the first country of Europe they find," says Larnaca civil marriage officer, Michaelakis Mallas. |
| "Ceremonies take 10 to 15 minutes but we do give them a good show!" he adds. | "Ceremonies take 10 to 15 minutes but we do give them a good show!" he adds. |
| Michaelakis enjoys his job. "You see a lot of emotion," he says. "And love knows no barriers." | Michaelakis enjoys his job. "You see a lot of emotion," he says. "And love knows no barriers." |
| Find out more | Find out more |
| In parts of the Middle East there have been attempts to legalise civil marriage but religious leaders have used their political influence to block them. | In parts of the Middle East there have been attempts to legalise civil marriage but religious leaders have used their political influence to block them. |
| Some countries simply impose Islamic or Sharia law but others have set-ups rooted in Ottoman times. These allow different religious communities to operate their own courts and parallel systems of family law. | Some countries simply impose Islamic or Sharia law but others have set-ups rooted in Ottoman times. These allow different religious communities to operate their own courts and parallel systems of family law. |
| So imams, priests and rabbis control marriage, divorce, child custody and inheritance. They argue that God sees all and religion cannot be separated from these aspects of a person's life. | So imams, priests and rabbis control marriage, divorce, child custody and inheritance. They argue that God sees all and religion cannot be separated from these aspects of a person's life. |
| Along the Cypriot coast in Paphos, foamy waves leap around Aphrodite's Rock. This is where the ancient Greeks believed the goddess of love was born and it is a popular wedding location. | |
| At sunset, under a blushing sky, an Israeli couple, Raz and Or, are getting married beneath a cream canopy on a pier. They're secular and insisted on a civil ceremony. | At sunset, under a blushing sky, an Israeli couple, Raz and Or, are getting married beneath a cream canopy on a pier. They're secular and insisted on a civil ceremony. |
| "In Israel, there is only religious marriage so couples have to go to the rabbi," the groom, Raz, explains. "The bride needs special training for being a wife and a ritual bath. It's an orthodox routine and if you don't believe in it, why do it?" | "In Israel, there is only religious marriage so couples have to go to the rabbi," the groom, Raz, explains. "The bride needs special training for being a wife and a ritual bath. It's an orthodox routine and if you don't believe in it, why do it?" |
| It doesn't matter whether Israeli Jews aren't religious at all, or are from the liberal Reform or Conservative movements in Judaism - their marriages are regulated by the strict Orthodox rabbinate, the top Jewish governing body. | It doesn't matter whether Israeli Jews aren't religious at all, or are from the liberal Reform or Conservative movements in Judaism - their marriages are regulated by the strict Orthodox rabbinate, the top Jewish governing body. |
| Couples wanting to marry must prove they're truly Jewish - that each is born to a Jewish mother or has officially converted. | Couples wanting to marry must prove they're truly Jewish - that each is born to a Jewish mother or has officially converted. |
| And that causes problems for some 350,000 immigrants to Israel from the former Soviet Union who don't meet these exacting standards. | And that causes problems for some 350,000 immigrants to Israel from the former Soviet Union who don't meet these exacting standards. |
| Many of them too head to Cyprus to marry. | Many of them too head to Cyprus to marry. |
| Last year, Gal and his Russian-Israeli wife, Masha, exchanged wedding vows in Limassol, next to the beach. | Last year, Gal and his Russian-Israeli wife, Masha, exchanged wedding vows in Limassol, next to the beach. |
| "It felt strange at the beginning as we're used to a Jewish ceremony," Gal says. "But this was professional - not like marrying in Vegas with an Elvis Presley lookalike." | "It felt strange at the beginning as we're used to a Jewish ceremony," Gal says. "But this was professional - not like marrying in Vegas with an Elvis Presley lookalike." |
| The couple hope for legal changes in Israel. Otherwise, they say, their baby - due any day now - might also have to marry abroad when he or she grows up. | The couple hope for legal changes in Israel. Otherwise, they say, their baby - due any day now - might also have to marry abroad when he or she grows up. |
| But for now, Cyprus is cashing in, marketing itself as '"The Island of Love". | But for now, Cyprus is cashing in, marketing itself as '"The Island of Love". |
| The foreign wedding industry is worth $135m (£100m) a year to the Greek Cypriot economy. | The foreign wedding industry is worth $135m (£100m) a year to the Greek Cypriot economy. |
| At the Larnaca wedding hall, I take a few photos for the mixed-faith Lebanese newlyweds, Rachelle and Abdul Kader. They are planning a big party back in Beirut. | At the Larnaca wedding hall, I take a few photos for the mixed-faith Lebanese newlyweds, Rachelle and Abdul Kader. They are planning a big party back in Beirut. |
| Abdul Kader says he and his wife have made compromises. Now it's time for the Lebanese authorities to do the same - and finally allow civil marriages. | Abdul Kader says he and his wife have made compromises. Now it's time for the Lebanese authorities to do the same - and finally allow civil marriages. |
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