27 Migrants Die After Boat Capsizes Off Turkey’s Coast

At least 27 migrants have died off the Turkish coast trying to reach the Greek island of Lesbos, Turkish media say.

 
The victims, including 11 children, drowned when their boat capsized after setting off from Balikesir province.

 
About 400 people have died crossing into Europe in 2016, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) says.
Most were travelling to Greece on their way to northern Europe. Recent fighting in Syria has sent thousands of people fleeing towards the Turkish border.

 
The sea route from Turkey to Greece was the most popular way for migrants trying to enter Europe in 2015.

 
In the latest incident, Turkish media quoted official as saying that 40 migrants set out for Lesbos from the Altinoluk area early on Monday. They say their boat capsized two miles (3.2km) into the crossing.

 
Hurriyet newspaper says the vessel was using a new route, because security forces have stepped up moves to deter migrants from taking their chances.

 

The paper also denied earlier media reports that another migrant boat had capsized further south off Izmir province.
News of the deaths came as Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel was in Turkey to discuss ways of reducing the number of migrants travelling to Europe.

 
After talks with Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, Mrs Merkel said they had agreed to seek help from Nato – both countries are members – in handling the migrant crisis.
She said they would use the next meeting of the alliance to consider “to what extent Nato can be helpful with the surveillance situation at sea” and support the EU border agency Frontex.

 
Syrians are not being allowed to pass into Turkey at the Kilis border crossing

 
The IOM says more than 68,000 migrants arrived on Greek shores in the first five weeks of 2016, despite often stormy conditions. This is a huge rise from last year, when the figure for the whole of January was less than 1,500.

 
Nearly half of those who have arrived in Greece this year are from Syria, the IOM says.

 

 

Credit : BBC

37 Migrants Die As Boat Sinks Off Libyan Coast

A boat carrying migrants sank off Libya’s Mediterranean coast, killing at least 37 people, a local official said, the second such fatal accident within days.

“We had reports this morning that there are seven bodies of illegal migrants that sank off Khoms (east of Tripoli)…but we don’t have any details how many migrants were on board,” said Mohamad al-Misrati, a spokesman for the Red Crescent in Tripoli. Fishermen later discovered 30 more bodies in the same area near Khoms, a town some 100 km (62 miles) east of the capital, he said.

Volunteers of the Red Crescent were trying to recover the dead but were lacking boats. No more details were immediately available. On Thursday, a vessel packed with migrants hoping to make it from Libya to Italy sank in waters off the Libyan town of Zuwara, killing up to 200 people.

Read More: nationalmirroronline

Pirates Attack Boat, Abduct 3 In Bayelsa

Unidentified gunmen suspected to be sea pirates on Wednesday, attacked two passenger boats and kidnapped three persons along the Ogbia to Brass waterways in Bayelsa.

Asinim Butswat, Police Spokesman for Bayelsa Command, confirmed the development on Thursday but said that details were still sketchy, “I am waiting for details.”, Butswat said.

It was learnt that the abducted victims were two Okpoama community Chiefs, identified as Chief Blessing Wagio and Chief Isaac Akono-Igolo, as well as a security man whose identity could not be ascertained.

The victims’ boats reportedly left the Ogbia water front at about 2pm on Wednesday for Brass, when they came under attack around Kiberibio area of the Ogbia-Brass waterway.

A staff of the state Ministry of Education heading to Brass, a naval officer and a former Chief Librarian in the Rivers State University of Science and Technology, Chief Jigekuma Ombu-Kieri, escaped the attack unhurt.

An eyewitness in one of the boats, Mrs Kilete Arum, also told said that she saw an unidentified man lying face down in the pirates’ speed boat when they were being dispossessed of their valuables.

Credit: NAN

Six Children Drown As Boat Capsize In Lagos

A canoe conveying fourteen school children capsized. Six of them reportedly drowned, while eight of them including the driver were rescued.

The incident occurred after a fibre canoe reportedly ran into the passenger boat at about 9am.

As at time of writing this report, the rescued children , some of whom were said to be primary school pupils and secondary school students who were on their way to school, were responding to treatment at the Igando general hospital, where they were rushed to.

However, three of them said to have swam their way to safety were discharged from the hospital at about 5pm.

Officials of the Lagos State Emergency Management Authority,LASEMA who were contacted , reportedly stormed the scene to commence rescue work. But as at 7pm, bodies of the eight missing children were yet to be found.

The South West spokesperson for the National Emergency Management Agency , Ibrahim Farinloye confirmed the incident. He said : “The 14 school children were being conveyed across Ojo to Irawe jetty, to school. Six children are yet to be recovered as I speak. Searches will continue tomorrow”

Creditvanguardngr

Libyan Migrants’ Boat En route to Europe Sinks

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Libyan navy reports that many migrants have drowned on their way to Europe after their boat sank off Libya.

Navy spokesman Ayub Qassem said 26 people had been rescued after the vessel – which carried 250 – went down near Tajoura, east of Tripoli. He adds that, “there are so many dead bodies floating in the sea” and that most of the migrants were Africans and many were women.