Eighteen migrants drowned when their boat overturned 26 miles (40 km) south of the Greek island of Chrysi, after a Turkish cargo ship spotted the vessel and alerted Greek authorities.

Two people were rescued from the sea and were being taken to Crete for medical care and further checks.

The boat was first detected by a Turkish cargo ship, whose crew contacted Greek authorities after seeing the vessel in distress. The coast guard launched an immediate operation, but most of the passengers were already unresponsive when rescuers reached the scene.

Greece was on the front line of the 2015-16 migration crisis, when more than a million people from the Middle East and Africa crossed into Europe. Although flows eased in the years that followed, the past year has seen a sharp rise in boats departing mainly from Libya and heading toward Crete, Gavdos and Chrysi - the three Aegean islands nearest to the African coast.
 

Despite intensified patrols and monitoring, fatal accidents remain common along these routes, where overloaded and unseaworthy vessels continue to put lives at risk. Authorities say search operations in the area will continue.

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Migrants Greece Mediterranean Sea migrant boat tragedy migrant boat