11 dead, over 40 missing as refugee boats sink in Aegean
Xinhua, October 29, 2015 Adjust font size:
About four boats carrying refugees from Turkey to Greece sank in the past few hours, leaving at least 11 people dead and more than 40 others missing, Greek authorities said.
Greece's Coast Guard retrieved 11 dead bodies, including eight children, and a rescue operation was underway in the Aegean Sea to search for the missing, the authorities said.
The sinkings occurred from Wednesday to early Thursday off the coasts of the Greek islands of Lesvos, Samos and Agathonissi.
From Tuesday to Thursday, Greek Coast Guard rescued almost 1,000 people attempting to cross over from the Turkish shores in wooden vessels.
Adverse weather conditions did not curb the influx of refugees from war-torn Syria.
Latest data from the Greek Shipping Ministry, the UN High Commission for Refugees and the International Office for Migration show that since January 2015, about 500,000 refugees and migrants have reached Greece to seek a better life in central and northern European countries.
More than 3,000 people have died this year when crossing the Mediterranean Sea.
Greek Shipping Minister Theodoros Dritsas reiterated in a statement Athens' plea for EU and neighboring countries to step up coordination to avoid such tragedies. Endi