Around 90 people have been rescued from a sailboat near the island of Amorgos in the Aegean Sea. The number of migrants reaching the Greek islands from Turkey continues to rise.
The sailboat was around 10 nautical miles southeast of Amorgos when one of the migrants on board reportedly called for help early on Friday. Passing ships and the coast guard patrol were able to rescue all the passengers, according to state media.
The migrants were taken to the reception center on the island of Leros, one of the five Aegean islands hosting newly arrived migrants. Initial reports said they were from various Middle Eastern and African countries.
The Leros Closed Controlled Access Center was opened in November 2021 with a multi-million euro grant from the European Commission. It was intended to provide improved living conditions for migrants, but the center has been heavily criticized.
In March, Refugee Support Aegean, a non-governmental legal group, reported that residents faced shortages of basic necessities, a lack of facilities and inadequate access to legal support and medical care, among other problems.
Also read: Greek government's new migrant camp plan hits obstacle
Rise in crossings from Turkey
The number of people crossing from the Turkish Aegean coast to Greek islands has risen over the past few weeks. According to the Greek migration ministry, 6,669 migrants were living in the reception centres on the island of Lesbos, Chios, Samos, Leros and Kos in mid-August. Their number has more than doubled compared with August last year, when the number was 2,964.
The rights group Aegean Boat Report (ABR) also said arrivals on the Greek islands have been increasing, with the highest number of people now registered since August 2021. The rise is partly due to fewer pushbacks of migrant boats, according to some reports by ABR, though posts also say the illegal practice of pushing back migrants is continuing. Transfers of migrants from the islands to the Greek mainland are also down, ABR added.
Also read: Greece: 52 migrants on sailboat rescued off remote island
With dpa, ana-mpa