There have been protests throughout Greece following the sinking of a boat carrying migrants and refugees, resulting in at least 78 fatalities.
Over 100 individuals were rescued from a capsized boat off the coast of Pylos, but the outlook for hundreds of others who remain missing is bleak.
A massive search and rescue operation retrieved 78 bodies, but authorities estimate that the trawler may have transported as many as 750 passengers, each of whom paid thousands of dollars for passage on the dilapidated vessel.
Reporting from the town of Kalamata, where the survivors were being held by the authorities, Al Jazeera’s John Psaropoulos stated that nine men had been detained on suspicion of belonging to the smuggling ring that organised the voyage.
“It is believed that they were junior functionaries, not the ultimate beneficiaries of the $3 million this passage may have been worth,” Psaropoulos added.
Greek rescuers scoured the Ionian Sea for survivors on Thursday as the likelihood of discovering more people dwindled.
Article from www.aljazeera.com
