Greek authorities on Saturday rescued nearly 60 migrants in inflatable boats trying to cross from Turkey to nearby islands in the eastern Aegean Sea, in two separate incidents, The Associated Press reported Saturday, citing the coast guard.
Greece has seen an increase in such arrivals in recent weeks, mostly on small non-marine boats provided by smugglers.
A Coast Guard statement said a patrol boat found 41 people early Saturday morning on a drifting inflatable boat off the island of Lesbos. All were safely evacuated and taken to a reception center on the island.
Prior to that, a coastguard patrol boat had stopped another dinghy with 17 people on board near the eastern Aegean islands of Arkia. The migrants were taken to the island of Patmos and one of them was arrested on suspicion of belonging to a smuggling group.
Greek officials blame the increase in arrivals mainly on conflicts in Africa, which are increasing pressure on major smuggling routes to Europe, and a growing black market industry in Turkey that produces low-quality inflatable boats.
