Migrant arrivals to Crete have jumped since December 2023
The flow of migrants from the Egyptian and Libyan coasts to southern Crete and the small island of Gavdos has been increasing since the end of last summer, according to data of the Greek Coast Guard seen by Kathimerini.
Between the start of 2024 and February, 12,573 migrants were detected in the region, while during the whole of 2023, the number of rescued refugees and migrants in the same area amounted to 666.
As for the evolution of the migrant flows, data from the Port Police Directorate clearly show the increasing trend of these occurrences, with December 2023 being the month with the most arrivals in the last six months.
Last Sunday, boats carrying dozens of irregular migrants who had sailed from Libya were found drifting south of Crete. In one case, a total of 72 foreigners, including 14 minors, were intercepted by a navy frigate 46 nautical miles south of Crete. They were taken to the bay of Kali Limenes, where they were picked up by a lifeboat and taken to the port of Iraklio. They stated that they had sailed from Tobruk, Libya and that they had spent between $2,000 and $4,000 to be transported to Greece.
A few hours later, the Vietnamese-flagged ship Leopard rescued 63 people, all men, whom the crew located and rescued on a boat 43 nautical miles south of Crete. They were also taken first to the Gulf of Messara and then to a shelter in Iraklio. They also said that they had set out from Tobruk and paid traffickers $4,500-5,000 for their journey to Greece.
This route is one of the most difficult and dangerous to Europe, with refugees and irregular migrants crossing hundreds of miles of open sea in relatively small boats.
The rescued migrants come mainly from Egypt and Afghanistan, while the number of Palestinian refugees arriving in Greece through this route is also rising.
Most of the arrivals are not recorded in Crete, but in the outlying island of Gavdos, where there is no infrastructure to receive migrants. One such incident was recorded on January 28, when 74 men (including 20 minors) in a boat sank in the Korfos area of the island.
The alarming development was confirmed in a recent interview with the mayor of the island, Lilian Stefanaki, who told Kathimerini that in Gavdos there are no structures for the temporary accommodation of migrants who are transported by coast guard boats to the Sfakia area of Crete.
Officials of the Ministry of Shipping and the Coast Guard link the increased number of arrivals to Crete with the increase in maritime surveillance in the eastern Aegean, following the closer cooperation between the Greek Coast Guard and the Turkish Coast Guard.
