Death toll in boat tragedy mounts to 16

Athens, December 25

At least 16 people died after a migrant boat capsized in the Aegean Sea late on Friday, bringing the three-day death toll from such shipwrecks in Greek waters to at least 30.

The accidents came as smugglers, who arrange sea crossings for Europe-bound asylum-seekers, increasingly favour a perilous route from Turkey to Italy, avoiding heavily patrolled eastern Aegean islands that were a prime destination for years.

The Greek coast guard said 63 people were rescued after a sailboat capsized late on Friday, some 8 km off the island of Paros, in the central Aegean. The coast guard reported 13 deaths as of late Friday, but three more bodies were found early on Saturday. — AP