ISTANBUL: Nine Syrian refugees, including seven children, trying to reach Europe drowned on Sunday when their speedboat sank off Turkey’s Mediterranean coast, state media reported.
The boat hit trouble off the Demre district of Turkey’s Mediterranean Antalya province, a popular holiday spot, the Anadolu news agency said.
One woman, a man and seven children lost their lives in the sinking which took place in the early hours, it said. The oldest child was 14 and the youngest just three, it added.
Six people — all adults — were rescued.
The Dogan news agency said they were seeking to head illegally to Europe but their planned route was not immediately clear.
The nearest EU territory is the small Greek island of Kastellorizo to the west which lies off the Turkish resort of Kas.
Anadolu said a couple who survived — named as Idris Rashit and Zeynep Osman — lost five of their children in the disaster. State media published images of the pair hunched in grief.
Over a million people, many fleeing the war in Syria, crossed to European Union member Greece from Turkey in 2015 after the onset of the bloc’s worst migration crisis since World War II.
Turkey struck a deal with the EU in 2016 in a effort to stem the flow of migrants, and agreed to take back illegal migrants landing on Greek islands in exchange for incentives including financial aid.
The deal, chastised by rights groups, sharply curbed the number of migrants seeking to cross the Aegean and Mediterranean Seas from Turkey to Greece.
However observers say that the numbers seeking to use this route have been ticking up again in recent months.
According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), 10,948 people crossed to Greece this year up to May 30, sharply more than in the same period in 2017. Thirty-five people lost their lives using this route so far this year, the IOM says.
As well as migrants from countries such as Syria, Eritrea, Iraq and Afghanistan, the route has been used by Turkish citizens fleeing the crackdown that followed the 2016 failed coup.
Seven children among nine Syrians drowned off Turkey: state media
Seven children among nine Syrians drowned off Turkey: state media
Gaza death toll surges to 71,548 as Israeli aggression continues
- The administration of President Donald Trump earlier in the week said the US-drafted ceasefire plan for Gaza was now moving into its challenging second phase, which includes the new Palestinian committee in Gaza
GAZA: The death toll from Israeli attacks has risen to 71,548 Palestinians, with 171,353 reported wounded, since the beginning of the offensive on Oct. 7, 2023, according to medical sources.
One new fatality was reported at a Gaza hospital in the past 24 hours, along with six new injuries, sources said.
Several victims remain trapped under rubble or lying in the streets, with ambulance and civil defense crews unable to reach them due to the widespread destruction and lack of supplies.
Since the ceasefire came into effect on Oct. 11, the number of fatalities has increased to 464 along with 1,275 injuries, while 712 bodies have been recovered from beneath the rubble.
Earlier on Saturday, a 27-day-old baby died because of severe cold, bringing the number of child deaths caused by extreme winter conditions since the start of the season to eight.
The administration of President Donald Trump earlier in the week said the US-drafted ceasefire plan for Gaza was now moving into its challenging second phase, which includes the new Palestinian committee in Gaza, deployment of an international security force, disarmament of Hamas, and reconstruction of the war-battered territory.
But Israel’s government is objecting to the White House announcement of leaders who will play a role in overseeing the next steps in Gaza.
Israel says the Gaza executive committee “was not coordinated with Israel and is contrary to its policy,” without details.
Saturday’s statement also said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has told the Foreign Ministry to contact Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
The White House-announced committee announced on Friday includes no Israeli official but does include an Israeli businessman.
Other members announced so far include two of US President Donald Trump’s closest confidants, a former British prime minister, an American general, and a collection of top officials from Middle Eastern governments.
The White House has said the executive committee will carry out the vision of a Trump-led “Board of Peace,” whose members have not yet been named.
The White House also announced the members of a new Palestinian committee to run Gaza’s day-to-day affairs, with oversight from the executive committee.
The committee’s members include US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Trump envoy Steve Witkoff, Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Apollo Global Management CEO Marc Rowan, World Bank President Ajay Banga, and Trump’s deputy national security adviser Robert Gabriel.
