Greek Coast Guard Picks up Nearly 2,500 Migrants in 3 Days

Greece’s coast guard picked up nearly 2,500 migrants from the sea in dozens of search and rescue operations over the weekend,

A Greek coast guard officer in a mask stands beside a small group of immigrants on a launch taking them to shore from a crippled smuggling ship carrying more than 700 people, at the coastal Cretan port of Ierapetra, Greece, on Nov. 27, 2014. Petros Giannakouris/AP Photo

ATHENS, Greece—Greece’s coast guard picked up nearly 2,500 migrants from the sea in dozens of search and rescue operations over the weekend, part of a relentless flow of people seeking the safety of Europe after facing war and poverty in the Middle East, Africa and Asia.

The coast guard said Monday it had rescued 2,492 people in 70 operations off the eastern islands of Lesbos, Chios, Samos, Agathonissi, Farmakonissi, Kos and Symi from Friday morning until Monday morning.

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