Greek coast guards scoured for survivors in the Aegean Sea on Saturday after the latest in a series of migrant boat accidents that have killed at least 30 people in just days.
According to the Athens news agency, the Coast Guard said they found the bodies of 12 men, 3 women and a baby and rescued 63 people from a capsized and sunk ship near the island of Paros with about 80 people to board.
Greek Maritime Transport Minister Yannis Plakiotakis accused Turkey of not doing enough to stop gangs from exposing migrants to this situation, “indifferent to human life, crowding dozens of people in distress and without vests. lifeguards on boats that don’t even meet basic safety standards. “
“Smugglers continue their criminal activity unhindered. They are murderers,” said the Greek Minister on Greek television. Turkey is not stopping the departure of such boats. The smugglers use rotten boats that have no rescue equipment on board and are extremely dangerous, said the minister.
According to the UN refugee agency UNHCR, more than 2,500 people have crossed the Aegean from neighboring Turkey this year, compared to over 9,700 in 2020.
Over 100 people died or are missing in migrant boat incidents last year, the agency’s data show.
Greece blames Turkey for not taking sufficient action to curb smugglers who send out migrants in unsafe boats and dinghies from its shores.
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