300 illegal immigrants reach Greek island

About 300 illegal immigrants, most of them Iraqi Kurds, were believed to have come ashore on a Greek island today after being smuggled across the Aegean Sea aboard a small cargo ship, the Merchant Marine Ministry said.

Police said they had detained 112 immigrants near the seaside town of Mandoudi, about 62.5 miles northeast of Athens on the island of Evia, and were combing the countryside for the remainder.

Coastguard vessels and ships were also searching the sea and coast in the area after officers found a small abandoned ship, believed to have smuggled the immigrants, near the facilities of an abandoned mining company on the outskirts of Mandoudi.

The ship had no flag or markings, but officials think it may have left from Turkey. It had no crew.

Tens of thousands of people from Asia, eastern Europe and the Middle East cross illegally into European Union-member Greece every year, typically heading to Greek islands close to Turkey’s coast.

Nearly 100 Afghan would-be immigrants have been detained on the Aegean Sea island of Kos in the past week alone after crossing illegally on boats from the nearby coast of Turkey.