Frontex border protection agency says irregular transitions to the EU through the Mediterranean rose last year.
Bodies of at least seven people are drawn Cyprus After the authorities have erected a large surgery of searching and rescue after covering the ship that wore refugees, says Cyprus State Television show.
The indefinite number of people are believed to have disappeared, while two people were saved on Monday from international waters about 30 nautical miles (55.5 km) southeast of the island, the television presenter said.
The Cypriot Coordination Center for Search and Rescue said that ships and aircraft were arranged as part of a rescue operation without mentioning victims.
In the official statement, it was stated that the surgery of search and rescue “in the course of finding missing persons after the migrant boat took over 30 nautical miles (55 kilometers) southeast of Cape Greco,” referring to the southeast point on the highest Mediterranean island.
Several naval helicopters and police patrol boats participated in the search for survivors, the center added.
According to the Cyprus News Agency, one survivor said to the authorities that there were approximately 20 Syrians on board who climbed from the Tartous port, the scene of a recent bloodstream in Syria.
The eastern Mediterranean island of Cyprus is less than 200 km (125 miles) from the Syrian and Lebanese coasts and has long been a path for refugees seeking a better life in Europe.
According to the United Nations data, 125 refugees died in the eastern Mediterranean last year, but the real figure is likely to be higher.
The Agency for the Protection of the EU borders, Frontex, said that irregular border crossings in the EU via the eastern Mediterranean rose last year, despite the wider fall of the block.
Nicosia said she had the largest number of new asylum seekers in the EU per capita, but managed to significantly reduce the figure.
Last month, the Ministry of the Interior said that the asylum applications fell to 69 percent from 2022 to 2024. While irregular maritime arrivals ceased from May due to stricter government policies.
Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad’s equipment in December encouraged some Syrian refugees to return home. The Government of the Republic of Cyprus reported that an average of 40 Syrians have since asked to return home a day.
The government also said that more asylum seekers are leaving Cyprus than for the first time in its independent history.
