The Greek Coast Guard is conducting search operations Wednesday (10) for dozens of people who went missing after a ship sank off the Carpathian island in the southeast Aegean Sea.
According to the statement made by the Coast Guard media official, “29 people, including Afghans and Iraqis, have been rescued so far. Searches continue because 60 of the 80 people were found on the sinking boat.”
Coast Guard spokesman Nikos Kokkalas told Greek state television that the boat capsized and sank off the Carpathian island between Rhodes and Crete. He added that the work of the rescue teams was hindered by strong winds ranging from 40 km/h to 50 km/h.
The rescue operation was ordered earlier on Wednesday by Navy Minister Yannis Plakiotakis after being notified of the incident. Four boats, two Coast Guard patrol ships and a Hellenic Air Force helicopter cruising at the wreck site are participating in the search for missing persons.
The ship had departed from the city of Antalya, in southern Turkey and not far from the Greek islands in the Aegean Sea. Greek authorities said the ship’s destination was Italy.
escape route
The dangerous crossing between the Greek islands in the Aegean Sea in the eastern Mediterranean and the Turkish coast often results in the deaths of many migrants and refugees trying to reach Europe by makeshift boats to escape war and misery.
According to data from the International Organization for Migration (IOM), 64 people have died in the Eastern Mediterranean since January 2022, and 111 in 2021. According to Greek authorities, the number of migrants and refugees arriving in Greece, primarily from Turkey, has increased this year.
Athens accuses Ankara of conniving traffickers and allowing migrants to reach Greece, in violation of a March 2016 agreement that required Turkey to reduce immigration from its territory in exchange for European financial assistance. Turkey denies the allegations.
The last shipwreck in the Aegean Sea occurred on June 19, when eight people died and 108 were rescued by the Greek coast guard on the Greek island of Mykonos, according to IOM.
(with information from AFP)
source: Noticias
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