Migrants rescued from sailboat in distress off eastern Greek island

Greece's coast guard says 68 people have been rescued. (File/AFP)

ATHENS: Greece's coast guard says 68 people have been rescued in the eastern Aegean Sea after the sailboat they were on sent a distress signal while off the coast of island of Leros.
The sailboat, which is believed to have set sail from Turkey carrying migrants hoping to reach Greece, issued a distress call early Monday, and the passengers were initially picked up by a passing merchant ship before being transferred to a coast guard vessel, the coast guard said.
All were safely transported to Leros, and there were no reports of any injuries or people missing. The nationalities of those on board were not immediately available.
The sailboat rescue comes days after a massively overcrowded fishing trawler transporting people from Libya to Italy sank off of western Greece last week, with hundreds of migrants feared drowned. The trawler is believed to have been carrying around 700 or 750 people when it capsized and sank last Wednesday in international waters west of Greece.
So far 104 people have been rescued, and 78 bodies recovered. A search and rescue operation continues in the area, but chances of finding any other survivors are exceptionally slim.