ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½

Skip to main content

Greece's coast guard rescues 52 people from migrant sailboat anchored off remote uninhabited island

Refugees and migrants are rescued by members of the Spanish NGO Proactiva Open Arms, after leaving Libya trying to reach European soil aboard an overcrowded rubber boat, north of the Libyan coast, May 6, 2018.  (Felipe Dana/AP Photo) Refugees and migrants are rescued by members of the Spanish NGO Proactiva Open Arms, after leaving Libya trying to reach European soil aboard an overcrowded rubber boat, north of the Libyan coast, May 6, 2018. (Felipe Dana/AP Photo)
Share
ATHENS, Greece -

Greece's coast guard on Tuesday rescued 52 people crammed onto a sailing boat anchored off an uninhabited island far from the country's mainland, authorities said.

A private vessel initially spotted the sailing boat off the small island of Falconera, officials said. The island is located between Milos and the Peloponnese in an area known for strong currents and rough seas. The migrants were being taken by coast guard vessels later Tuesday to the mainland port of Lavrio, southeast of Athens.

Separately Tuesday, 19 people were rescued from a dinghy that had lost steering northeast of the eastern Aegean island of Samos. Another 18 in a different dinghy were picked up later in the day off the same island, while the coast guard said that 14 migrants were rescued Monday from a small boat off the island of Lesbos.

In June, a battered trawler smuggling up to 750 people from Libya to Italy sank southwest of Greece in one of the worst Mediterranean migrant disasters in years. Only 104 people survived, while Greek authorities were criticized for failing to intervene in time.

Greece has reported an increase in the number of people arriving in the country by sea in recent weeks. For decades, the country has been on one of the preferred migration routes into the European Union for people fleeing conflict and poverty in the Middle East, Africa and Asia. Its eastern islands close to Turkiye have long been a major entry point, but stricter deterrence policies in recent years had reduced arrivals.

But Greece has come under heavy criticism over what rights organizations have said is a systematic practice of illegally and clandestinely carrying out summary deportations of recent arrivals back to Turkiye without allowing them to apply for asylum. The government strenuously denies it carries out such deportations.

CTVNews.ca ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½

BREAKING

BREAKING

Three men were injured after trying to subdue a man armed with a knife during afternoon prayers at a Montreal-area mosque Friday afternoon.

A 15-year-old boy who was the subject of an emergency alert in New Brunswick has been arrested.

Police have arrested an 18-year-old woman who allegedly stole a Porsche and then ran over its owner in an incident that was captured on video.

Since she was a young girl growing up in Vancouver, Ginny Lam says her mom Yat Hei Law made it very clear she favoured her son William, because he was her male heir.

The search for a missing six-year-old boy in Shamattawa is continuing Friday as RCMP hope recent tips can help lead to a happy conclusion.

Local Spotlight

Getting a photograph of a rainbow? Common. Getting a photo of a lightning strike? Rare. Getting a photo of both at the same time? Extremely rare, but it happened to a Manitoba photographer this week.

An anonymous business owner paid off the mortgage for a New Brunswick not-for-profit.

They say a dog is a man’s best friend. In the case of Darren Cropper, from Bonfield, Ont., his three-year-old Siberian husky and golden retriever mix named Bear literally saved his life.

A growing group of brides and wedding photographers from across the province say they have been taken for tens of thousands of dollars by a Barrie, Ont. wedding photographer.

Paleontologists from the Royal B.C. Museum have uncovered "a trove of extraordinary fossils" high in the mountains of northern B.C., the museum announced Thursday.

The search for a missing ancient 28-year-old chocolate donkey ended with a tragic discovery Wednesday.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is celebrating an important milestone in the organization's history: 50 years since the first women joined the force.

It's been a whirlwind of joyful events for a northern Ontario couple who just welcomed a baby into their family and won the $70 million Lotto Max jackpot last month.

A Good Samaritan in New Brunswick has replaced a man's stolen bottle cart so he can continue to collect cans and bottles in his Moncton neighbourhood.