Greek authorities say four Turkish nationals have been arrested on suspicion of smuggling migrants after a boat with nearly 100 people on board was found in trouble off an island near Athens
Greek authorities announced Friday that four Turkish nationals had been detained on suspicion of smuggling migrants after a boat with about 100 people on board was discovered in distress off an island close to Athens.
The passengers, who were transported to the Greek mainland by a coast guard vessel, were from Egypt, Afghanistan, Syria, Somalia, Israel and Iraq, the coast guard said. The boat had set sail from Izmir in Turkey and had been bound for Italy, with the migrants paying smugglers in Turkey 8,000 euros each for the trip.
On the same day six migrants drowned Friday when their bus fell into an irrigation canal in southeastern Turkey, the local governor's office said.
Five others were injured and 25 rescued in the accident, which occurred about 15 kilometres (10 miles) north of the Syrian border.
The migrants' nationalities were not immediately clear.
One local news report said the accident happened while the bus driver was trying to flee local security forces who were looking out for illegal border crossings.
