Migrant crisis escalates: Over 500 rescued off Crete coast
The Greek coast guard reported on Sunday that, in recent days, over 500 migrants, primarily men, have been rescued off the coast of Crete and safely transported to reception centres.
According to Sunday's statement, simply on Saturday, during five separate operations, 280 people were rescued, including 13 minors.
Four of these rescue operations took place near the island of Gavdos, located south of Crete in the eastern Mediterranean Sea.
The fifth case involved a group of 53 migrants who reached the town of Dyskos in the south of the island by inflatable boat. It was revealed that they set off from Libya on Friday morning and paid between £3,500 and £4,600 for the journey. One member of this group, a Sudanese citizen, was detained and charged with human smuggling.
The day before, in five separate rescue operations in the same area, 263 migrants were rescued, including 10 children. Most of them had set off from Tobruk in Libya, heading towards Greece.
The coast guard reported that, in connection with these incidents, three Sudanese and two Egyptians were detained on charges of smuggling migrants. The rescued individuals were mainly citizens of Sudan, Egypt, and Bangladesh.
Greece serves as one of the main transit points to Europe for people fleeing war and poverty, especially from Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. Attempts to illegally cross the sea often end in tragedy.
Two years ago, one of the largest disasters occurred when an overloaded and rusty fishing boat set off from Tobruk and sank off the coast of the Peloponnese. There were over 750 people on board; over 600 died, 82 bodies were recovered, and 104 people survived.
