100 children thought to be in warehouse in Greek migrant disaster
The biggest migrant disaster of the year took place in Greece. Off the coast of the Peloponnese Peninsula, 79 people died when a fishing boat carrying migrants capsized. While searching for missing migrants, a blood-curdling claim was made about the disaster. It was claimed that there were about 100 children in the hold of the capsized boat.
A fishing boat carrying nearly 700 irregular migrants capsized off the coast of Navarin in the Peloponnese. In what is seen as the deadliest migrant tragedy of the year in Greece, 79 people lost their lives in the incident that occurred in international waters.
While hundreds of injured people are still being treated, a blood-curdling allegation has been made about the incident. The NGO Save The Children claimed that about 100 children were trapped in the hold of the capsized boat.
While the allegations were based on the statements of eyewitnesses, a migrant rescued in the Greek press said that there were about 100 children in the hold of the boat.
'YOUR MIGRATION POLICY HAS TURNED THE MEDITERRANEAN INTO A GRAVEYARD'
Greek Radical Left Alliance (SYRIZA) leader Alexis Tsipras said in Kalamata, where he went to get information about the incident, that the European Union's (EU) migration policies were responsible for the tragedy.
Speaking to reporters, Tsipras said, "There are huge political responsibilities in the migration policy that Europe has been following for years. A migration policy that has turned the Mediterranean into a big graveyard. This policy needs to change."
"The protection of human life is more important than the protection of borders!" Tsipras said, emphasizing that questions such as "What are the protocols that allow the authorities to continue their route when they see a boat ready to sink, instead of rescuing it?"
NATIONALITIES OF MIGRANTS REVEALED
The Greek Coast Guard announced that 47 of the rescued migrants were Syrian, 43 Egyptian, 12 Pakistani and 2 Palestinian citizens.
According to the non-governmental organization Alarm Phone, there are about 700 people on the boat trying to go to Italy from Tobruk region in eastern Libya. On the other hand, search and rescue efforts are continuing for the missing.
3 DAYS OF NATIONAL MOURNING IN GREECE
Greece declared a 3-day "national mourning" following the migrant boat disaster.
