In spite of the good weather conditions at sea, the Coast Guard and Frontex were called out in two different incidents in the eastern Aegean Sea early on Friday morning. So far 12 bodies have been recovered and 67 refugees have been saved.

In the first case, the Coast Guard and Frontex were called out off the eastern shores of Farmakonisi, where a boat carrying refugees capsized. It was reported that 41 refugees were rescued and 7 bodies were recovered (six children and one woman).

Meanwhile another operation involving three Coast Guard craft, a Super Puma helicopter and private boats, is being carried out north of Kalolimnos, after a yacht was said to have capsized and sunk.

So far 26 refugees have been rescued and 34 bodies have been recovered (7 men, 16 women and 11 children). It is not clear how many people were on board the yacht, with estimates ranging from 50 to 100.