After the sinking of a boat destined for Italy, research continues in the Aegean. Of the 80 passengers, 50 are still missing.
The Greek Coast Guard searched for dozens of shipwrecked migrants on Wednesday (10 August) after their boat sank off the island of Karpathos in the south-eastern Aegean.
“According to 29 rescued, there were 80 people on the boat, so up to 50 people are missing,” a Greek Coast Guard official told AFP. So far, 29 people have been rescued, including Afghans, Iraqis and Iranians.
Research hampered by the wind
The shipwrecked boat had sailed from the Turkish city of Antalya on the neighboring Turkish coast and was bound for Italy, according to the same source. Four boats operating in the area of the sinking, two Coast Guard patrol boats and a Hellenic Air Force helicopter are involved in the search for the missing person. These searches are hampered by strong winds of 40–50 km/h (7 on the Beaufort scale) indicated on the radio. Skaï Nikos Kokalas, spokesman for the Coast Guard, stressed that “many shipwrecked people were not wearing life jackets”.
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The perilous crossing of a few nautical miles between the Greek islands and Turkish coasts in the Aegean Sea in the eastern Mediterranean claims the lives of many migrants and refugees trying to get to Europe on makeshift boats to escape war and misery. Since January 2022, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), 64 people have died in the eastern Mediterranean, up from 111 in 2021. The last shipwreck in the Aegean occurred on June 19: eight people died off the island of Mykonos, while 108 people were rescued by the Greek Coast Guard according to the IOM.
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The number of arrivals of migrants and refugees in Greece, mainly from Turkey, has increased this year, according to the Greek authorities. Athens accuses Ankara of ignoring smugglers’ practices and allowing migrants to enter Greece in violation of the March 2016 deal, which saw an effort by Turkey to limit migration from its territory in exchange for European financial aid. Turkey denies these allegations.
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For its part, Greece is being highlighted by NGOs and the media for its responsibility in illegally turning back migrants at its sea and land borders. The conservative Greek government claims to have always rejected such pushbacks. At the end of June, EU Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson called on Athens to put an end to the “forced and illegal deportations” of migrants.
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