Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on March 28, 2026
2 min readLast updated: March 28, 2026
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Twenty‑two migrants died after enduring six days at sea off Crete in a rubber dinghy, while 26 survivors were rescued by a Frontex vessel, AFP reported, citing the Greek coast guard. The report is based on survivor testimony; Reuters is awaiting independent confirmation.
March 28 (Reuters) - Twenty-two migrants have died off the coast of Greece after spending six days at sea in a rubber boat, the Greek coast guard said in a statement late on Friday.
Twenty-six people were rescued by a Frontex European border agency vessel off the island of Crete.
"During the journey, the passengers (of the rubber boat) lost their orientation and remained at sea for six days without water and food," it said.
Rescued migrants told authorities that 22 of them died while at sea and the bodies were thrown overboard on the orders of one of the traffickers, the statement said.
Greece has long been a favoured gateway to Europe for migrants and refugees from the Middle East, Africa and Asia.
In 2015-16, it was at the frontline of Europe's migration crisis and nearly 1 million people landed on its islands, mainly from Turkey.
Many are still attempting to cross the Mediterranean sea in boats and accidents are not rare.
Greece has since toughened its stance on migrants, reinforcing border controls with fences and sea patrols.
(Reporting by Chandni Shah in Bengaluru, Aleksandar Vasovic, Louisa Gouliamaki and Rene Maltezou; Editing by Joe Bavier and Louise Heavens)
Twenty-two migrants died off the Greek coast, according to AFP reports.
The migrants spent six days at sea in a rubber boat before being rescued.
A Frontex European border agency vessel rescued 26 people off the island of Crete.
The reports were cited by AFP, based on survivors' accounts to the Greek coast guard.
Reuters stated it could not immediately verify the report about the incident.
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