Migrant boat sinks in Greek waters, five dead

ATHENS, Feb 17 (Reuters) Five illegal immigrants drowned and 21 were missing after their boat sank in rough seas off the Greek island of Samos in the eastern Aegean, Greece's Merchant Marine Ministry said today.

The ministry said coast guard vessels, a warship, a helicopter and nearby commercial vessels are looking for survivors of the boat that left the Turkish coast for Samos yesterday.

''The bodies of four men and one woman have been located and are being transported,'' it said in a statement. It did not disclose their nationality.

Thousands of migrants from Asia and Africa attempt to cross illegally into Europe from Turkey every year, either braving sea journeys across the Aegean or through Greece's northern borders.

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