Yet another maritime tragedy was reported on Saturday afternoon in a sea region south of Crete in international waters, with the bodies of 18 individuals retrieved by Greek coastguard and Frontex personnel.
Another two individuals were rescued and subsequently hospitalized in critical condition, media reports state.
The victims and survivors are believed to have been occupants of a migrant boat attempting to reach Greek territory, in this case the large island of Crete or the small isle of Gavdos. Reports were still stretchy in the evening as to whether more occupants were missing.
A half-sunk boat was first spotted in the sea region 26 nautical miles southwest of the islet of Chryssi by a Turkish-flagged freighter amid winds of 4 on the Beaufort scale.
The Libyan Sea separating the North Africa coast and Crete, roughly 300 kilometers, over the past few years has emerged as a new “migrant route” used by smugglers to ferry third country nationals towards EU territory.
