ATHENS: Four migrants died on Monday and five were rescued when an inflatable boat sank off the coast of the Greek island of Samos in the Aegean Sea, the coastguard said.
Accidents involving migrants occur regularly off the coast of Greece, one of the most popular countries through which people fleeing poverty or war in Africa, Asia and the Middle East seek to enter the European Union. The boat sank early on Monday off the northwest coast of Samos, one of the Greek islands lying closest to Turkey, from where many migrants launch on their journey.
“Four women have drowned,” a coastguard spokeswoman told AFP, adding that the search for survivors was ongoing by coastguard vessels, a helicopter and a diver. Some local media reports had said earlier that up to 20 more people could be missing.