MOSCOW, November 3 (RIA Novosti) — At least 24 people lost their lives when a boat carrying illegal migrants sank in the Bosphorus strait near Istanbul Monday, according to local media reports.
"The wind is making our task very difficult. The boat is a very small one… But it was carrying 40 people. We are seeing the bodies of children floating in the sea," rescuer Ali Saruhan is quoted as saying by the Turkish Hurriyet newspaper.
Most of the victims were children, the newspaper wrote. The nationality of the migrants is yet to be confirmed by officials. According to local media reports, the boat was carrying Afghan and Syrian refugees heading to Romania.
Seven coastguard boats, a helicopter and a team of divers, as well as local fishermen, are reportedly taking part in the rescue efforts. An investigation has already been launched to determine the circumstances surrounding the accident.
Thousands of migrants have perished in the Mediterranean and Aegean seas while trying to flee conflict-torn regions in the Middle East and Africa, though few refugee boats have been seen in the Bosphorus, Hurriyet said.
