Two dead, 16 rescued after migrant boat capsizes

Two women died and sixteen other mainly Iraqi migrants, including eight children, were rescued on Monday after their boat capsized off the southwestern Turkish coast, the coastguard said.

The coastguard intervened to rescue the migrants after they were alerted early morning.

They rescued 15 Iraqis and one Syrian, the coastguard said in a statement, adding that the bodies of the two women were found.

The migrants said 19 people were on board the boat initially and the search to find another missing woman continued, the coastguard said.

The boat had been on its way to Greece, according to state-run news agency Anadolu.

Turkey is the world’s largest refugee-hosting country with over three million Syrians and up to 300,000 Iraqis. It is also one of the transit countries used by those fleeing war and poverty to try and get to Europe.