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At least 21 people have died in separate migrant-boat emergencies off Crete, as Greek and EU crews rescued dozens more amid strong winds. The island has become a major route into the EU for people departing from Libya.

At least 21 people have died in separate migrant-boat emergencies off Greece’s southern island of Crete, as Greek coast guard and EU border agency crews rescued more than 100 others amid strong winds and difficult sea conditions. The deaths underscore the dangers of the increasingly busy route from Libya to Crete, which has become one of the main entry points into the European Union.

Greek authorities said a Morocco-flagged container ship spotted a migrant boat about 15 nautical miles, roughly 28 kilometers, south of the port of Kaloi Limenes early on Monday (November 9). A coast guard vessel later rescued 18 people from the boat and recovered the bodies of 12 others.

Over 22,500 ppl have reached Crete from Libya this year, many Sudanese fleeing a brutal conflict. This devastating loss of life underscores the need to address the causes forcing people to flee, while ensuring rescue at sea, protection & solutions along routes and safe pathways.
— UNHCR Greece (@UNHCRGreece) November 9, 2026

The coast guard initially reported 12 dead, but later said that one of four survivors taken to hospital had died, bringing the toll from that vessel to 13. Sky News reported 14 deaths, however InfoMigrants was unable to verify this figure. The identities of the dead and the exact circumstances of their deaths were not immediately known. Greek authorities said autopsies would be carried out.

Survivors were described as suffering from exposure after what officials believed had been several days at sea. "We found them (the survivors) shivering from the cold," a local coast guard official told Reuters.

The four people taken to hospital included a toddler, according to a second coast guard official. The remaining survivors were expected to be transferred to a migrant reception facility on Crete.

Eight dead in earlier rescue

Another eight bodies were retrieved in a separate emergency operation that began late Saturday (November 7), after a boat issued an alarm signal south of Crete. Strong winds made the rescue operation particularly difficult, according to the Greek coast guard.

A nearby vessel picked up 28 Sudanese nationals and one body, before transferring them to a police vessel and taking them to Crete, authorities said on Sunday (November 8). The coast guard later located the boat, about 10 nautical miles south of the island, where they found seven more bodies aboard. Two people remain missing.

The Greek coast guard docked in the port of Agia Galini on November 9, 2026 | Photo: Stefanos Rapanis/Reuters

The coast guard said towing the vessel had been "absolutely impossible and extremely dangerous" because of violent winds.

Two Sudanese nationals, one aged 16, were arrested after survivors identified them as suspected people smugglers. Greek authorities said they face charges including illegal entry, facilitating illegal entry, forming a criminal organization and fatal exposure.

More boats intercepted

In separate operations on Monday (November 9), the Greek coast guard and Frontex responded to further boats located south of Crete. A Frontex aircraft spotted one boat carrying about 47 people, while a Frontex drone located another with about 40 aboard. Those on both vessels were rescued by Frontex and were being taken to a port on Crete’s southern coast, according to the Greek coast guard.

A third boat, carrying around 100 people, was spotted by a Frontex drone roughly 47 nautical miles south of Crete later on Monday morning. All those aboard the three vessels were to be brought to Crete, according to the coast guard.

Map showing the port town of Kaloi Limenes on the Greek island of Crete and the city of Tobruk in Libya, a distance of around 330 kilometers | Screenshot: Google Maps

For survivors of the latest incident, the journey had begun days earlier. According to accounts cited by Greek authorities, the people aboard the boat found on Monday had left Libya on November 3 or 4.

The latest deaths follow another deadly incident last month, when 12 people, including an infant, died after two boats capsized while traveling from Turkey to the Greek islands of Lesbos and Samos.

Increasingly deadly route

Crete has become a major destination for migrants departing Libya and attempting to reach the EU. The route has grown increasingly active in recent months, with thousands making the dangerous crossing from North Africa, often aboard unsafe and overcrowded vessels.

Greece remains one of the EU’s principal entry points for people fleeing conflict and poverty in the Middle East, Africa and Asia. Arrivals from Libya, many involving people from Sudan and Bangladesh, have risen in recent years, even as overall irregular crossings into the EU have declined.

File photo: A group of newly-arrived migrants board a ferry bound for Piraeus, mainland Greece, in Souda, on the island of Crete, Greece, July 11, 2025 | Photo: Nicolas Economou / Reuters

Frontex said in October that the eastern Mediterranean was the busiest route for people attempting to enter the EU. It recorded around 31,800 attempted crossings in the first three quarters of 2026, a 15 percent fall from the same period a year earlier, with the Libya-to-Crete corridor the busiest section of that route.

Growing pressure on Crete

According to the UN refugee agency, more than 37,000 migrants had arrived in Greece in 2026 as of Monday, with more than 22,000 landing on Crete. The Greek government has announced plans to open a temporary housing complex near Heraklion, the island’s largest city, in response to the rising numbers.

The latest deaths follow another deadly incident earlier this month, when a survivor reported that a boat carrying around 60 people had sunk south of Crete. The man, found near the island of Chrysi, told coast guard officers that he was the sole survivor. Searches involving patrol boats, nearby vessels and a Frontex aircraft found no trace of the boat or the other passengers.

Boats used by migrants to cross the Mediterranean Sea are seen at Tripiti beach, Gavdos island, Greece, the southernmost point of Europe | Photo: Elena Becatoros /AP Photo / picture alliance

The pressure on Crete has been building over the past few months. This month, 1,326 people arrived on Crete and the nearby island of Gavdos between November 1 and 3, according to coast guard sources cited by Greek media. More than 850 migrants reached Greek shores on November 2 alone, most after crossing the Mediterranean from North Africa to Crete.

Reception capacity strained

More than 650 people were being housed at a site used for parking garbage trucks, 835 people were crowded at Heraklion port, and about 500 were in Chania, according to local reporting.

Arrivals on Crete and neighboring Gavdos had already surpassed the previous year’s total by late October. UNHCR figures reported by the German press agency dpa showed almost 21,000 arrivals by October 25, compared with 20,187 documented by Refugee Support Aegean during all of 2025.

Greek authorities in Crete have been overwhelmed with the recent rate of arrivals on the island | Photo: Stefanos Rapanis / Reuters

Greek Migration Minister Thanos Plevris said on November 4 that only two migrant facilities would operate on Crete, ruling out a third center in Ierapetra. He said the facility in Hania was already operating, while the one in Heraklion was expected to open in the coming days.

With AFP and Reuters