Afp and Ap
La Jornada Newspaper
Sunday, December 15, 2024, p. 18
Athens. At least five migrants died, an unknown number are missing and more than 200 were rescued in Greece in several operations carried out south of the island of Crete, the Greek coast guard reported yesterday.
The four operations began Friday night and at press time one was still ongoing, according to the coast guard.
Three operations, including the one currently underway, involved separate incidents off the island of Gavdos, south of Crete, and the fourth took place off the southern Peloponnese region.
Dozens missing
In the ongoing relief effort, 39 people have been rescued and taken to Crete, the coast guard said. Five bodies were recovered from the water. Survivors have said dozens more were traveling on the same boat.
A total of nine vessels, including coast guard ships, an Italian navy frigate and four merchant ships, were still involved in the rescue yesterday, as well as two helicopters, the coast guard said. In the other two maneuvers off Gavdos, 47 and 89 people were rescued, respectively.
While 28 migrants were rescued off the Peloponnese, no missing travelers were reported. Greece this year recorded a 25 percent increase in the total number of foreigners entering the country fleeing war and poverty, with a 30 percent increase in the flow to Rhodes and the southeastern Aegean Sea, according to data from the Ministry of Migration.
