(AP) Authorities on the southern Greek island of Crete detained 76 migrants early Tuesday after they arrived on three boats, as smugglers seek new routes in the region to evade coast guard patrols.
The migrants from Syria, Egypt, Sudan and Bangladesh included six children and arrived before dawn on the tiny island of Gavdos, near Crete’s southern coast, local officials said. Usually, such migrants are detained for identification and processing, after which they can apply for asylum while waiting in refugee camps, with cases accessed on an individual basis.
Smugglers typically target Greek islands close to Turkey’s coastline, but in recent months they have increasingly chosen longer routes to Crete and islands in the central Aegean Sea, where coast guard patrols are more relaxed.
