Migrant boat sinks off Turkey, at least 7 dead

ANKARA, Turkey – Turkey’s state-run news agency says a boat carrying migrants to a Greek island has sunk, killing five children and two adults on board.

Anadolu Agency says the boat sank off the Turkish resort of Cesme late on Thursday. Nine other people — four Iraqis, three Somalis and two Syrians — were rescued. One migrant was reported missing.

Anadolu said police are searching for a smuggler who left the boat as it started to sink.

Hundreds of people fleeing poverty and war continue to arrive in Greece each week, although the main migration route to the European Union has shifted, from the short trip between Turkey and the Greek islands to the much longer and more dangerous journey across the Mediterranean from north Africa to Italy.