ATHENS, Greece — More than 230 migrants crossing the Mediterranean in small boats from North Africa reached Greece's southern island of Crete over the weekend, Greek authorities said Monday. More than 230 migrants reached the Greek island of Crete from North Africa over the weekendThe arrivals, in six separate crossings, far outnumbered the few dozen migrants who took the more common route from Turkey to the nearby eastern Aegean islands over the weekend. Officials said the migrants reaching Crete over the weekend mostly reported being from Egypt, Sudan or Bangladesh. In all cases, the migrants who reached Crete said they had departed from the eastern Libyan port of Tobruk and paid smuggling gangs up to 9,000 euros each for their passage. About 100 more migrants reached Crete on Friday.

Source: The North Africa Journal October 07, 2024 21:27 UTC