By Tasos Kokkinidis
Jul 7, 2025
The escalating migration crisis on Crete was dramatically underscored on Sunday morning, as a group of migrants arrived directly onto a beach in southern Crete, amidst bewildered bathers.
Shocking video footage captured the moment individuals, crammed onto a boat, jumped into the water and made their way to shore in front of families and tourists.
This arrival right onto a beach is part of an overwhelming surge. Over 840 people have arrived to Crete and Gavdos in the last 24 hours alone, pushing migratory flows to an all-time high for the region.
Massive rescue efforts off Crete and Gavdos
The vast majority of recent arrivals have been the result of extensive and challenging rescue operations at sea. Coordinated by the Joint Search and Rescue Coordination Center (EKSED) and executed by the Coast Guard and other vessels, these efforts have saved over 840 lives in the past day.
One such operation, 25 nautical miles southeast of Gavdos, involved the rescue of 430 people from a single, dangerously overloaded fishing vessel. This complex rescue effort, involving a Coast Guard patrol boat and a Panamanian-flagged tanker, safely brought the individuals to the port of Agia Galini. Additionally, a FRONTEX ship rescued 96 people from two dinghies on Sunday afternoon, highlighting the constant need for vigilance and resources in the waters surrounding Crete.
Sea arrivals of migrants from northeastern Libya trying to cross into Europe in recent months have skyrocketed. Individuals mainly hail from the Middle East and North Africa, but there are also nationals from war-torn areas, as well as citizens of Egypt and Bangladesh.
Last month, Athens said it would deploy two frigates near Libyan territorial waters to help stem the flow. It also urged Libya to cooperate more closely with Greece and the EU to stop migrants from sailing from there or turn them back before they exit Libyan territorial waters.
Greece and Libya have been attempting to mend relations since a memorandum was signed in 2019 between the Libyan government and Turkey. Greek Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis traveled to Benghazi on Sunday to discuss migration with eastern Libyan military commander Khalifa Haftar.
“We will continue our undisturbed relationship…and we hope that in the near future we will have tangible results for the progress of our relations,” Gerapetritis was quoted by his ministry as saying after meeting Haftar.
Greece deploys ships to prevent migrant flows to Crete
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis recently emphasized Greece’s firm commitment to preventing the establishment of a new migration route from Eastern Libya to Crete.
In speaking at a press conference following the European Council meeting in Brussels last month, Mitsotakis stated, “We will use every measure to prevent a new migration route to Crete from being established, I would say both the carrot and the stick.”
Greece has already taken independent action, deploying ships outside Libyan territorial waters. “Whenever boats are detected, we are contacted to intercept them by the same Libyan authorities and return them back to Libya,” Mitsotakis explained.
The Prime Minister reiterated a dual approach, combining incentives and deterrents, to ensure this new route does not become entrenched.
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