According to the Greek authorities, according to an eyewitness, a ship carrying as many as 50 people sank on Folegandros Island, and dozens of refugees are believed to have died. This is the second incident in the Mediterranean in a few days. Heavy casualties.
Nearly 24 hours after the rescue operation began late on Tuesday, Coast Guard officials said it was unlikely to find survivors.
“Efforts will continue, but there is an opportunity to find anyone in very cold and very deep waters [alive] It is decreasing every hour,” said Nikos Kokkalas, a spokesman for the Greek Coast Guard. “Our concern is that most people will not try to get off the ship at all and will sink to the bottom of the sea with it. “
He said that by late Wednesday, rescuers had only found the body of one man.
The incident happened less than five days after the UN immigration official said 164 people drowned on the coast of LibyaIt is now the main transit point for people in Africa and the Middle East to escape war and poverty.
In recent months, due to the unprecedented suppression of refugees in the capital Tripoli, there has been a surge in transit attempts from this oil-rich anarchic state.
In two different shipwrecks on Friday and Saturday, rescuers found the body of a person who drowned when the wooden boat from Libya to Italy capsized in the rough sea. According to data from the International Humanitarian Organization, since the beginning of this year, the loss of life has brought the death toll of people using the central Mediterranean route to approximately 1,500. migrant.
More and more migrant ships are also travelling from Turkey to Italy via Greek territorial waters, and this year’s voyage record is close to 12,000.
“We see more strongly that people are trying this kind of journey in all seasons,” Kocallas said. “This is no longer a seasonal phenomenon that only occurs in spring and summer.”
The Ministry of Shipping of Greece stated that a naval frigate, four Coast Guard ships, three Super Puma helicopters, a C-130 military transport aircraft, three passing ships and three private ships participated in the search and rescue operation on Wednesday. Everyone was seconded after the ship sank around 8pm on Tuesday night. It is expected that the Greek Air Force helicopters will continue to search the area throughout the night.
Earlier, the authorities discovered that 12 people had successfully escaped in an inflatable rubber boat attached to the ill-fated boat. According to officials, the survivors were mainly from Iraq, including a woman and four teenagers, including three Syrians and two Egyptians. A survivor told the Greek Coast Guard that the ship began to enter water after an engine failure, and there may be as many as 50 people on board.
Ministry of Shipping official Giorgos Skordilis said that witnesses described the ship sinking within minutes. “It was obviously totally unseaworthy and started to sink quickly,” he said. “As far as we know, it’s crowded with people.”
Although with the militarization of its land and sea borders, the number of arrivals has dropped sharply-and, the rights groups say, continued “fight back“The ship-Greece is still the initial destination for many attempts to enter the EU.
During a regional tour earlier this month, Pope Francis described the Mediterranean as a “cemetery without gravestones.” Condemned Europe Strengthen its border policy, the sole purpose of which is to keep asylum-seekers out.
“These [shipwrecks] A strong reminder that people continue to risk their lives and embark on a desperate journey in search of safety,” said Stella Nanou, spokesperson for UNHCR in Athens. “They emphasize the need to create more conventional routes. If there is a legal and safe route, those seeking asylum will have a choice. “
At present, she said, people are facing an “impossible dilemma” and they have to decide whether to risk their lives to stay in their country or embark on a dangerous voyage with “very little chance.” Europe.
NGOs are increasingly expressing shock at the strength of the deterrence policies adopted by the EU’s external borders. In recent months, Greece has erected a 25-mile (40-kilometer)-long steel wall on the land border shared with Turkey and deployed sound cannons capable of emitting deafening noise. This is the EU’s coordination to curb immigration. Part of the strategy.
