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Turkish coast guards rescue 30 illegal Syrian migrants from sinking boat

Xinhua, April 21, 2015 Adjust font size:

Turkish coast guards rescued 30 illegal Syrian migrants from a sinking boat off Turkey's Aegean coast, the state-run Anatolia news agency reported on Tuesday.

The Turkish coast guards were in search for a missing person as they noticed the nine-meter-long rubber boat near Bodrum district of southwestern Mugla province, according to the report.

Despite warnings by the coast guards to stop, the people on the boat attempted to escape towards Kos Island of Greece, said the report.

Some 30 Syrians were rescued from the boat that was taking water and was about to sink, said the report.

Turkey is geographically positioned between Asia and Europe, making it a major transit point for Middle Eastern and Asian migrants and refugees fleeing from poverty or conflict in their home countries.

Mostly, Syrians that are fleeing their war-torn homeland are among those illegal migrants as they try to reach Europe through Turkish territory. Endit