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The Straits Times. (2026, November 9). Greece recovers 12 dead migrants from boat off of Crete, coast guard says. The Straits Times. https://www.straitstimes.com/world/europe/greece-recovers-12-dead-migrants-from-boat-off-of-crete-coast-guard-says
The Straits Times. “Greece recovers 12 dead migrants from boat off of Crete, coast guard says.” The Straits Times, 9 Nov. 2026, https://www.straitstimes.com/world/europe/greece-recovers-12-dead-migrants-from-boat-off-of-crete-coast-guard-says.
The Straits Times. “Greece recovers 12 dead migrants from boat off of Crete, coast guard says.” The Straits Times, November 9, 2026. https://www.straitstimes.com/world/europe/greece-recovers-12-dead-migrants-from-boat-off-of-crete-coast-guard-says.
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Greek authorities recovered 12 bodies from a boat carrying migrants off the southern coast of Crete on November 9, 2026, while a passing cargo ship rescued 18 survivors from the same vessel. The boat was found about 15 nautical miles (28 km) south of Crete early that morning. No details have been released regarding how the migrants died or their identities.
Additionally, two other boats carrying 47 and 40 people, respectively, were spotted sailing near the island. All rescued individuals are being taken to a port on Crete's southern coast. This incident follows an increase in migrant arrivals from Libya; over 1,700 migrants arrived in Greece from Libya within the first three days of November.
Greece’s migration and asylum minister Thanos Plevris warned that the country is preparing for a potential crisis due to increased arrivals, attributing this surge to a breakdown in cooperation with Libyan authorities. A new reception facility at Athanati on Crete is scheduled to open soon to accommodate more migrants.
Greece, for years a favoured gateway to Europe for migrants and refugees from the Middle East, Africa and Asia, was at the front line of Europe's migration crisis in 2015-2016 and nearly 1 million people landed on its islands, mainly from Turkey. Total migrant arrivals have ebbed since as Athens have bolstered sea and border patrols but sea arrivals from northeastern Libya of migrants trying to cross to Europe through Crete have surged.