Greece says 66 migrants arrive on southern island of Crete after sailing from Libyan coast

All had arrived connected the aforesaid woody vessel overnight and had divided into 2 groups, the seashore defender said. Three of the Egyptians, aged 23, 26 and 31, were arrested connected charges of smuggling aft different passengers identified them arsenic having been successful power of the boat.

The passengers told authorities they had acceptable sail from Libya successful the aboriginal hours of Tuesday and had each paid astir USD 2,000 for transition to Greece, the seashore defender said.

Greece has been connected 1 of the preferred routes into the European Union for decades for radical fleeing warfare and poorness successful the Middle East, Africa and Asia. Arrivals via neighbouring Turkiye and the Libyan seashore person spiked implicit the past year.

In 2024, Greece recorded much than 60,000 arrivals — the immense bulk by oversea — compared to conscionable implicit 48,000 the erstwhile year.

With authorities intimately patrolling the eastbound oversea borderline with neighbouring Turkiye to forestall migrant boats reaching adjacent Greek islands, smugglers look to beryllium progressively opting for the overmuch longer and riskier Mediterranean Sea crossing from the northbound African seashore to the confederate extremity of Greece.

The 66 reported connected Thursday were successful summation to dozens much the seashore defender said had arrived betwixt Monday and Wednesday connected Crete and the tiny land of Gavdos, Greece’s southernmost point.

Of those, 29 radical – 10 from Sudan, 10 from Pakistan, 5 from Bangladesh and 4 from Egypt – had been picked up by a passing Philippines-flagged tanker vessel dozens of miles southbound of Gavdos connected Wednesday.

Another 45 radical from Egypt, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sudan had been rescued from the aforesaid wide country by a Marshall Islands-flagged cargo vessel connected Tuesday. The seashore defender said Thursday that 2 of the Egyptians connected committee had been arrested arsenic suspected migrant smugglers.