Migrant boat sinks near Lesbos, claiming lives of five people, including four children

Following the incident, Turkey's Coast Guard carried out a separate operation, capturing 42 migrants. (Photo: AA)

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A boat carrying migrants sank off the northeastern coast of Greece's Lesbos (Midilli) island, near Turkey's shores, leading to the loss of five people, including four children who drowned. The victims include an 8-year-old boy and three girls aged 14, 8, and 11 months.

Greek coast guard authorities confirmed the incident that took place in the early hours of today, revealing that 18 individuals were rescued from the sinking boat.

Greece's maritime affairs minister, Miltiadis Varvitsiotis, said the rescue operation was conducted by Greek coast guard units in Turkish territorial waters. A spokesperson for the Greek coast guard, Nikos Alexiou, said Turkey had not conducted a rescue operation.

In response, Turkey's Coast Guard said the statements were inaccurate, and it rescued 42 migrants trying to cross into Lesbos in a separate attempt this morning.

According to reports from Greek media, the Greek coast guard identified a boat carrying 37 people off the coast of Samos island in the eastern Aegean Sea shortly after midnight. The coast guard immediately initiated a rescue operation after passengers on the boat were observed falling into the water upon seeing the patrol boat.

Pavlos Marinakis, a spokesperson for the Greek coast guard, expressed sorrow for the five lives lost and emphasized the necessity of "dismantling the dark networks of human trafficking that exploit vulnerable individuals."

Increasing migrant crossings

Marinakis highlighted that the coast guard has been actively involved in rescue operations due to the increased migrant crossings in the last two months in the Aegean Sea. Over the weekend, they rescued 20 people from a boat near Lesbos and another 11 from a boat that had sunk near the same island.

The Greek government attributes the recent surge in migrant crossings to improved weather conditions and the opportunist exploitation of increased small boat traffic in the Aegean Sea by human smugglers during the tourism season.

Greece remains a preferred entry point to the European Union for individuals fleeing conflicts, poverty, and seeking a better life from the Middle East, Africa, and Asia.

The migrant burden on Greece

According to United Nations figures, over 14,000 people have reached Greece by land and sea routes by the end of August this year. This number represents about a tenth of the total successful Mediterranean crossings to Italy, which stands at around 104,000. In 2022, approximately 19,000 individuals arrived in Greece.

In June, a dilapidated fishing trawler carrying an estimated 500-750 people from Libya to Italy sank off the southwestern coast of Greece. Only 104 people were rescued, prompting severe criticism of Greek authorities for their failure to evacuate the vessel in time.

Since the height of the European migration crisis in 2015, during which approximately one million people entered Greece, the country has escalated patrols along its sea and land borders with Turkey to stem the majority of arrivals who seek passage to wealthier northern European countries.

Human rights organizations and migrants accuse Greece of violating the law by forcibly expelling individuals who manage to reach the country without allowing them to apply for asylum, despite the government's strong denial of such practices. (AEK/VK)