Turkish coast guard finds at least 500 Greece-bound migrants
by Anadolu Agency
ANKARAAug 15, 2015 - 12:00 am GMT+3
by Anadolu Agency
Aug 15, 2015 12:00 am
Turkey's Coast Guard has reported that it found almost 500 migrants along its western coast on Saturday, preparing to make their way to neighboring Greece.
The Turkish General Staff issued a statement claiming that 493 people were found when Turkish forces discovered boats carrying migrants in areas up and down the country's western shores.
Migrants were found in the provinces of Mugla, Aydin, Izmir plus the north-western provinces of Balıkesir and Çanakkale as well as the southern region of Antalya.
The Turkish Coast Guard has already rescued nearly 3,000 migrants since Aug. 10 in the Aegean Sea.
At least 40 migrants have died on Saturday after their vessel sank in the Mediterranean Sea, 33 kilometers [21 miles] north of the Libyan coast.
The Italian navy, which rescued 312 people caught up in the incident, said early Saturday that the victims drowned after the boat took on water in its hold.
"Operation underway... many migrants saved. At least 40 dead," the navy said on its Twitter account.
Italy's interior minister, Angelino Alfano, told reporters the tragedy would not end if the Libyan problem is not solved.
Instability in Africa and the Middle East has seen many migrants attempting to enter Europe through Italy, near Lampedusa and the Strait of Sicily.
Some 102,000 migrants crossed to Italian waters from Libya to reach safety in 2015, the International Organization for Migration said previously.
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