Refugee boat sinks off Turkey’s Aegean coast, 18 dead

The 14-meter-long (46-foot-long) vessel sank at around midnight Friday at a spot some 3.5 kilometers (2.1 miles) off the coast of the Turkish city of Bodrum, the Dogan news agency reported.

Fourteen people were rescued, but 18 others, including children, were found dead in the sea, the Turkish Coast Guard said.

There was also a commitment by the European Union to pressure third countries into either activating older reintroduction agreements or agreeing to readmissions, he revealed.

A record 500,000 refugees, often from Syria and Iraq, have travelled through Turkey and then risked their lives at sea to reach Greek islands this year.

A number of people were taken to hospital, with some said to be in a serious condition.

Persons suspected of organizing the trip were detained.

According to the latest figures released by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), almost one million refugees have reached Europe’s shores so far this year, while more than 3,300 people have either died or gone missing in their perilous journey to the continent.

A young boy cries out for help with other refugees and migrants as their boat sinks off the Greek island of Lesbos island while crossing the Aegean sea from Turkey on October 30, 2015.

“More than 781,000 migrants have arrived in Greece by sea since the start of the year, mostly from Turkey”, it added.