At least five dead and dozens missing after migrant boat sinks in Greece

Many similar incidents have occurred, following an increase in the number of attempts to cross the Mediterranean.

A new tragedy. Five migrants died on Saturday December 14 when their boat sank in the Aegean Sea off the coast of Crete. Around forty people are still missing, the Greek coast guard announced. A large rescue operation was underway at midday to try to find those missing in the maritime area south of Gavdos after the shipwreck which occurred shortly after midnight on Friday. 39 people were also rescued.

The first dead person was found on Saturday morning. Another man with symptoms of drowning was taken by helicopter to hospital in Chania, western Crete, where he was admitted to intensive care, according to Greek media reports.

Greece has seen a 25% increase this year in the number of people fleeing war and poverty, with a 30% increase in Rhodes and the southeast Aegean alone, according to the Migration Ministry. Several similar incidents have occurred in recent weeks, the latest in early November, when four people died near the island of Rhodes.