Europe is facing a great challenge as migrant crisis seems never ending. In the latest tragedy 34 bodies were found on the Turkish coast.
It is believed that their boats have capsized while crossing to the island of Lesbos. The corpses were discovered on the beaches at Ayvalik and Dikili about 50 km apart. The coast guards searched Turkey’s Aegean coast for survivors and rescued eight people who had climbed on to a breakwater.
Turkish police told the local media that 24 bodies were found on the beach or in the sea off Ayvalik while 10 more were discovered near Dikili. All of them wore life jackets and their nationalities are unknown.
According to the residents, the boat that sank off Ayvalik appeared to have hit rocks. I’m guessing these people died as they were trying to swim from the rocks,” said one of the locals.
In the early hours of Tuesday, the conditions in the Aegean Sea were described as rough and the migrants who tried to reach Lesbos Island were in rubber dinghies.
More than 48 hours ago, dozens of people were rescued from a small island off the town of Dikili as they attempted to cross to Lesbos. Helicopters were called in for assistance because the island was too rocky for rescue boats to evacuate the affected individuals.
Despite of cold weather, boats are continuing to arrive on the Greek islands every day. Lesbos is the most popular destination for migrants leaving Turkey. More than 500,000 reached the island in 2015, according to the local authorities.
Last year, more than one million migrants crossed the Mediterranean in search of peace and better life. Majority of the asylum seekers traveled by ferry from Turkey to Greece and later moving to other European states particularly Germany and Sweden. IMAGE/Getty Images
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