One child among the three migrants drowned off Greece

A Syrian refugee girl is comforted by her brother as she cries moments after arriving in a dinghy on the Greek island of Lesbos, on Sept 12, 2015. PHOTO: REUTERS

ATHENS (AFP) - Three people, including a child, drowned when a boat carrying some 100 migrants capsized off Greece early on Sunday (Sept 13), the Athens News Agency reported.

It said the coastguard had rescued 68 people following the incident off the island of Farmakonisi in the Southern Aegean Sea.

A further 29 managed to swim to a beach on the island, but the coastguard recovered the bodies of three people, including a child.

Meanwhile, the coastguard was continuing a search for four children missing after another boat carrying migrants capsized on Saturday off Samos island.

The latest incidents come more than a week after international public opinion was appalled by the bleak image of a Syrian toddler, Aylan, lying face down on a Turkish beach.

The boy drowned along with his mother and brother when their boat capsized on a short run from Turkey to the Greek island of Kos and hopes of a new life in Europe.

The International Organisation for Migration has said over 430,000 migrants and refugees had crossed the Mediterranean to Europe so far in 2015, with 2,748 dying or going missing en route.

Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.