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Three people drowned and more than ten are missing in a second consecutive incident with migrants off Greece this week, reports Reuters.

The Greek coast guard said 19 people were rescued in an operation launched in the early hours of the day after an inflatable dinghy was spotted on rocks off the coast of the island of Lesbos, near Turkey.

At least 10 people were taken to hospital, authorities said, with some suffering from hypothermia, as a cold front brought freezing temperatures and snow to many parts of Greece this week.

Survivors told authorities that there were about 41 people on board the boat when it set sail from the Turkish coast.

Two Coast Guard vessels and a helicopter were assisting the search operation in high winds and bad weather, the Coast Guard said.

Greece stopped 260,000 illegal migrants, arrested 1,500 traffickers for 2022.

State broadcaster ERT said the migrants were from Syria, Yemen and Somalia, citing accounts from survivors.

Greece has long been one of the main entry points into the European Union for refugees and migrants from the Middle East, Africa and Asia.

Most arrive on inflatable boats from Turkey, a short but dangerous journey that has killed thousands.

Four migrants, including three children, died after their boat capsized off the island of Leros in the southeast Aegean on Sunday.

migrant boat