Turkey says 8 migrants drown off coast of Izmir

Seven children, four men and two women have drowned after a boat carrying refugees capsized off the tiny Greek island of Farmakonisi, as a refugee exodus towards Europe continues despite winter cold.

The Turkish coastguard said they managed to rescue some 21 migrants from the water, including a one-year-old baby and that they are still looking for two people.

A migrant boat has sank off the coast of Turkey in the Aegan Sea killing 19 people including six children.

According to IOM, nearly 3,700 refugees died crossing the Mediterranean and 1,005,504 refugees have arrived in Europe by sea and land so far this year. Twenty-one people were rescued.

ISTANBUL (AP) – The latest on the continuing flow of refugees and other migrants into Europe.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel had chose to let all Syrians enter the country, a decision that was condemned by other European leaders who feared that it would attract even more migrants.

Divers from the nearby Turkish coastal city of Izmir were rushed to the scene after a tip-off that more refugees could be stuck in the hold, Dogan said.

The victims included five children, the official said.

But a unified European Union positon remains elusive, with Hungary and Slovakia having made threats of legal action against the bloc’s controversial plan to distribute 160,000 refugees across member states. “My message is I’d like the whole world to open its doors to Syrians”.

“We ask just for a little bit of sympathy from you”. Most on the crossing from North Africa to Italy, the longest stretch.

The boat carried refugees and migrants from Turkey, Xinhua quoted an official as saying. Lebanon has one million Syrian refugees itself, Jordan 600,000.

The EU clinched the agreement with Turkey on November 29, offering 3 billion euros (3.18 billion US dollars) in aid and more promising access for Ankara’s membership to the bloc in return for a massive reduction in illegal migrant arrivals.