“We can’t allow people to die of cold in the Balkans”, he said.
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Twenty-seven people were rescued, among them a pregnant woman, and the survivors were said to be in good condition, Dogan reported.
“When it took in more water they tried to return but the boat sank before they could make it back to shore”.
600,000 migrants and refugees are expected to cross from Turkey to Greece and onwards over the next four month.
The crisis worsened over the summer when hundreds of thousands more people fleeing wars, persecution and poverty mainly in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan arrived in Greece and the Balkans via Turkey. The boat carrying the migrants sank off the coast of Ayvacik early on Wednesday. on its approach to the Greek island of Lesbos.
For the first time in 11 days, no refugees died overnight in the crossing between the Turkish mainland and the eastern Greek islands, Greek authorities report.
Turkey has become a launching point for refugees trying to reach Europe’s front states of Greece and Italy.
“We want to keep up the pressure to ensure that the things which have been decided really happen”, German Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere said in Brussels.
Jorge Fernandez Diaz said that an initial group of 19 refugees was being housed Sunday, placing Spain “at the vanguard of European Union nations that are putting into effect relocation plans”.
The proposal for Balkan “processing centres” was put forward out of concern that migrants might be left stranded in both European Union and non-EU Balkan states as the winter sets in and richer European Union member states like Sweden and Germany warn that their capacity to accept asylum seekers may soon be exhausted, Reuters said.
The interior ministry said that the case was an accident caused by a ricochet from a police warning shot.
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In recent weeks, the Scandinavian country has seen over 20 arson attacks as an influx of refugees has surged.
