Monday 19 October 2015

Italy navy says eight migrants die in Mediterranean, 113 rescued


Eight bodies have been recovered from a rubber boat carrying migrants trying to cross the Mediterranean, the Italian navy said in a Tweet on Sunday.

It said the ship Bersagliere had rescued 113 migrants from the boat. It gave no further details.

On Saturday, the navy rescued 562 migrants trying to reach Europe on five boats.

Nearly all of those rescued on Saturday were from sub-Saharan African countries.

Monday 19 October 2015

http://news.yahoo.com/italy-navy-says-eight-migrants-die-mediterranean-113-000315721.html

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A dozen refugees drown enroute to Greece


At least 12 people have drowned after a boat carrying refugees attempting to reach the Greek island of Lesvos sank in the Aegean Sea, Turkish officials said on Saturday.

Canakkale Governor, Hamza Erkal said the boat carrying more than 48 refugees — most of them reportedly from Syria and Afghanistan — sank in the Turkish waters of the Aegean Sea as the boat was on its way to Greece, the Anatolia news agency reported.

Security officials identified the dead bodies, which include one infant, four children, five women and two men.

The Turkish Coast Guard rescued 25 refugees from the wooden boat, which had set off from the Turkish resort town of Ayvacik, located in the northwestern Canakkale province.

The Coast Guard crews have been searching for at least 11 other missing refugees, Erkal said.

In a separate incident, a Pakistani refugee reportedly drowned, on Saturday, after falling off a boat carrying 38 people, Turkish Coast Guard officials said.

The boat had departed from the coast of Bodrum located in the southwestern province of Mugla and was heading towards the nearby Greek island of Kos.

Monday 19 October 2015

http://greece.greekreporter.com/2015/10/18/a-dozen-refugees-drown-enroute-to-greece/

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Colombia, rebels reach deal to search for thousands missing in war


The Colombian government and leftist FARC rebels have agreed to two measures they say will help find tens of thousands of people who have disappeared during 50 years of war, as the two sides take the final steps toward a peace deal.

The agreement, reached late Saturday, addresses a key issue at the negotiations, which reached a major breakthrough in September when then two sides vowed to sign a deal by March.

Colombia's attorney general estimates 52,000 people have disappeared during Latin America's longest war, which has killed some 220,000 people and displaced millions. Victim groups say between 70,000 and 100,000 people may have gone missing.

The two sides agreed to create a "specialized unit to search for people who are considered disappeared," according to a joint statement. The unit, separate from judicial investigations, will provide families with official reports on information obtained about their missing family members.

"These steps are transcendental, but, I repeat, they are just first steps," lead government negotiator Humberto de la Calle said on Sunday. "What was agreed yesterday looks to alleviate this pain - the profound pain of the families of the disappeared."

The government and rebels will also furnish the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) with information about the missing, so the charity can help design search plans.

"We will put all our experience toward supporting relatives, exhuming mortal remains in areas where the government cannot do it and by consulting with responsible institutions," Christoph Harnisch, head of the ICRC's delegation in Colombia said in a statement.

The agreement was "another step for peace" President Juan Manuel Santos, who has staked his legacy on successfully reaching a deal, said on Twitter.

Some captured and demobilized former rebels have already cooperated with authorities to locate remains in exchange for lighter sentences, a task complicated by the rural jungle or mountain locations of many unmarked graves.

Human rights advocates and families of the disappeared have warned that unless more bodies are located, exhumed, identified and returned to their families, Colombia risks handicapping its post-conflict development.

Forensic investigators in the Andean country often struggle with large case loads and lack of training, funding and equipment.

The government and FARC have been in peace talks in Havana for nearly three years. They recently set a deadline of March 23 to reach a final agreement, which would then be put before Colombian voters for ratification.



Monday 19 October 2015

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/world/colombia-rebels-reach/2201818.html

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