ATHENS — The death toll from two migrant boats found south of the Greek island of Crete has risen to 21, according to reports by Reuters and Greece's public broadcaster ERT on Monday, November 9. Reuters reported that one of the people taken to hospital after the second boat was found has died, raising that boat's toll from 12 to 13; added to the eight people who died on a separate boat found over the weekend, the combined toll is 21.

Source: Reuters and ERT via AppiSToS, Nov 9 2026

The Greek coast guard said a Morocco-flagged container ship spotted the second boat about 15 nautical miles (about 28 kilometres) south of Kaloi Limenes port early on Monday. A coast guard vessel rescued 18 people and recovered 12 bodies. Four survivors were taken to hospital, and one of them later died, the reports said. Survivors were suffering from exposure after several days at sea, and a coast guard official told Reuters the rescued people were shivering from the cold when they were found. Passengers told authorities they had left Libya on November 3 or 4.

Source: Greek Coast Guard via Reuters and Migrant Affairs, Nov 9 2026

The weekend boat: eight dead, two still missing, say survivors

The first boat sent an alarm signal south of Crete late on Saturday, November 7. A nearby vessel rescued 28 Sudanese nationals and recovered one body, and the coast guard later found the boat about 10 nautical miles south of the island with seven more bodies on board, taking that boat's toll to eight. Survivors reported that two passengers had fallen into the sea on Friday and were still missing — that account is separate from the confirmed toll of 21. Strong winds made towing the vessel extremely dangerous, the coast guard said. The Heraklion Port Authority has arrested two people in its investigation into the first boat, on allegations including facilitating unlawful entry and exposure resulting in death, the coast guard said; the arrests do not establish guilt.

Source: Hellenic Coast Guard via Reuters, Nov 9 2026

Three more boats found on Monday

While the two deadly cases were being counted, coast guard crews and Frontex, the European Union's border agency, found three more boats south of Crete on Monday: one carrying about 47 people, spotted by a Frontex aircraft; a second with about 40 people, located by a Frontex drone; and a third with around 100 people, detected about 47 nautical miles south of the island. The people on the first two boats were rescued and taken to Crete's southern coast, and authorities said those on the third would also be brought to Crete.

Source: Associated Press and Frontex via Migrant Affairs, Nov 9 2026

Crete is now the busiest gate on the Libya route

The UN refugee agency said more than 37,000 migrants had arrived in Greece during 2026 as of November 9, with more than 22,000 of them reaching Crete. Frontex reported in October that the eastern Mediterranean was the busiest migration route into the EU in the first nine months of 2026, with about 31,800 attempted crossings recorded — and the Libya-to-Crete corridor was its busiest section. Between November 1 and 3 alone, 1,326 people arrived on Crete and the nearby island of Gavdos, according to coast guard figures reported by Greek media, putting heavy pressure on the island's reception facilities. Greece's Migration Minister Thanos Plevris said on November 4 that the government would operate only two migrant facilities on Crete.

Source: UNHCR and Frontex figures via Migrant Affairs and AFP, Nov 9 2026

The identities of the dead have not been released, and authorities said autopsies would be carried out. The Central Port Authority of Heraklion is conducting the preliminary investigation into the weekend boat. Awaaz Punjab is not naming or picturing any victim; the confirmed toll may change as the coast guard completes its count.