Greece recovers bodies of four migrants
AP
Pictured is the islet Portes in the Aegean Sea near the island of Paros, in Greece. (AP Photo/Dimitri Messinis)
ATHENS - Greek divers
recovered the bodies on Friday of four migrants who drowned while their
boat was being towed by a coastguard vessel last month.
The bodies of two adults and two
children were brought to the surface from the wreckage of their boat, 73
meters (240 ft) below the surface of the Aegean Sea, the coastguard
said in a statement.
“There were also other bodies ... who could not be recovered,” it said.
Two people were confirmed drowned and ten declared missing on January 24, when the boat capsized.
Greek prosecutors launched an
inquiry after the U.N. refugee agency UNHCR, human rights groups and
political parties asked whether the coastguard itself had caused the
accident by trying to tow the boat toward Turkish waters, as some of the
survivors have said.
Migrant drownings are not uncommon
in Greece, a gateway to the European Union, but the latest incident has
drawn accusations that Greece breached EU law by trying to push the 28
migrants back to Turkey, where they had set to sea.
The coastguard says they were towing the boat towards Greek waters, not to Turkey.
Prime Minister Antonis Samaras has
made illegal immigration a priority for his government and for Greece's
six-month stint as holder of the rotating EU presidency. Greece has
long complained of being overwhelmed by migrants and its economic crisis
has boosted anti-immigrant sentiment.
Criticism of the government's
handling grew after television footage showed survivors arriving at the
port of Piraeus near Athens, recounting in tears how they watched their
children drown as coastguard officials looked on.
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