Hundreds missing after refugee boat sinks; EU Commissioner speaks of “worst tragedy ever” in the Mediterranean – Fox News

The sinking of a refugee boat off the coast of Greece was possibly the deadliest in modern times.

An undetermined number in the hundreds remained missing and were likely killed when the refugee ship sank earlier this week.

“We do not yet have all the information about what happened, but it seems that this is the worst tragedy we have ever experienced in the Mediterranean,” EU Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson said at a press conference in Brussels on Friday.

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A photo shows the boat carrying migrants before it sank in Kalamata, Greece, June 15, 2023. Migrants rescued from a shipwreck after a boat carrying dozens of migrants sank in international waters of the Ionian Sea sit in a warehouse. Greece has declared three days of mourning, the interim prime minister’s office said on June 14, after a refugee boat sank in the Ionian Sea feared to have killed hundreds. The Greek Coast Guard has so far recovered 79 bodies and rescued over 100, but survivors claim there were up to 750 people on board. The death toll when a fishing boat crammed with migrants sank off the coast of southwest Greece rose to 79, local media reported on Wednesday. (Photo by Hellenic Coast Guard/Handout/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

The refugee boat was en route from Tobruk, Libya, to Italy when it capsized in the sea off the coast of Greece.

Such a massive loss of life has sparked outrage in Europe over the ongoing refugee crisis, as foreign nationals continue to make extremely dangerous journeys to the continent.

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Johanssan lamented the overcrowded boat organized by “smugglers”.

Members of a missing person’s family seek information after survivors of the shipwreck were transferred to a Greek refugee camp in Malakasa, near Athens, June 16, 2023. Greek rescuers searched the Ionian Sea by plane and boat for survivors of the sinking of a refugee boat on June 16, 2023, as hopes of finding more alive two days after the disaster faded. On June 14, a fishing boat overloaded with migrants capsized and sank off the Peloponnese, killing at least 78 people. About 104 people were found alive. ( (Photo by Angelos Tzortzinis / AFP) (Photo by ANGELOS TZORTZINIS/AFP via Getty Images))

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“They don’t send them to Europe, they send them to their deaths,” Johansson said. “That’s what they’re doing and it’s absolutely necessary to prevent it.”

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Emergency services have so far rescued over 100 passengers and recovered about 79 bodies.

However, survivors claim that there were up to 750 people on the boat when it sank.