4 illegal migrants die in boat capsize off western Turkey

ISTANBUL– Four illegal migrants, including a baby, died on Tuesday when a boat sank off Turkey's Aegean coast, the Turkish coast guard said. 

The fiber boat carrying a total of 15 illegal migrants capsized near the Ayvacik district in the northwestern province of Canakkale, the force said in a statement posted on its website. 

The coast guards rescued 11 migrants, the statement said, noting the rescue operation had ended as there was no missing person reported. 

The nationalities of the migrants, believed to have tried to sneak into a Greek island, were not immediately clear, the statement said, while the state-run Anadolu Agency reported them to be Iranians and Afghans. 

The Aegean Sea was once the main route for migrants fleeing into Europe via Turkey. A deal signed between Turkey and the European Union in March 2016 has helped reduce the flow of illegal migration. 

Since this year, a total of 3,975 migrants have attempted to reach the Greek islands via Turkey, down from 4,041 over the same period in 2018, according to figures released by the Turkish coast guard. Enditem 
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