Stranded migrants rescued from rocks off Turkey in dramatic operation

  15 December 2017    Read: 1119
Stranded migrants rescued from rocks off Turkey in dramatic operation
The Turkish coastguard has mounted a dramatic rescue operation in the Aegean Sea, saving 51 people who became stranded on rocks as they attempted to cross to Greece.

Authorities intervened after receiving an emergency call at 1.12am local time. The coastguard said the rescue operation could only begin in daylight due to the rocky area and bad sea conditions. Helicopters dropped food and blankets in the night.

Footage from the rescue operation near the coastal city of İzmir showed coastguard personnel airlifting a child as others waited on the rocks next to a partially deflated rubber dinghy.

Five children and a woman were rescued in this way while the rest were transferred to coastguard boats with the assistance of fishermen in the area, the coastguard said.

Thousands of refugees and migrants are stranded in camps in Greece as the country attempts to deal with a backlog of asylum requests, and the influx has empowered far right and anti-immigrant parties across Europe.

A report by 12 humanitarian organisations released on Wednesday said 2,000 unaccompanied children were stranded on waiting lists for safe shelters in Greece, amid a chronic shortage of housing, with many sleeping rough.

While interest has waned in the refugee crisis, humanitarian organisations and governments on the Mediterranean continue to mount rescue missions for stranded people, many of whom now attempt to cross through Libya. A recent CNN investigation in the country documented the horrific and widespread abuse of migrants and refugees, describing how some are sold as slaves in local markets after their capture.

Human rights organisations have blamed the European Union, which is providing funds to curtail migration from Libya, for being complicit in the abuses.

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