ATHENS, GREECE (AP) – Greek authorities said that four people died and 18 were rescued yesterday after a boat carrying migrants apparently sank northeast of the Greek island of Lesbos, which lies near the Turkish coast.
The coast guard said one of its vessels collected the 18 survivors and four people found unconscious and transported them to the island’s main port of Mytilene.
Over the weekend, the coast guard has said it has picked up dozens of people from boats near eastern Aegean Sea islands, part of an increase in new arrivals over the past two months.
For decades Greece has been one of the preferred entry points into the European Union for people fleeing conflict or poverty in the Middle East, Africa and Asia and hoping for a better life in Europe.
More than 14,000 people have reached Greece by land and sea so far this year, according to United Nations figures. That’s about a 10th of the total successful Mediterranean crossings, most of which – about 104,000 – were to Italy. Arrivals in Greece for the whole of 2022 totalled 19,000.
