Greek authorities recovered the bodies of 12 people from a boat carrying migrants south of the island of Crete early on Monday, November 9, 2026, the Greek coast guard said. The boat was found about 15 nautical miles, about 28 km, south of Crete, off the port of Kali Limenes, also spelled Kaloi Limenes, on the southern coast of the island. A passing Moroccan-flagged container ship spotted the vessel. A further 18 people from the same boat were rescued alive by the coast guard. In two separate operations overnight, more people were found on two other boats in the same stretch of sea. In all, about 117 people were found in the three operations, of whom 105 were rescued alive, the coast guard said.
Quick Facts
| Detail | Fact |
|---|---|
| Date | Early on Monday, November 9, 2026 |
| Location | About 15 nautical miles, about 28 km, south of Crete, off Kali Limenes |
| People found dead | 12 |
| People rescued from the same boat | 18 |
| Total people found in three operations | About 117 |
| Total people rescued alive | 105 |
| How the first boat was spotted | By a passing Moroccan-flagged container ship |
| Weather at the time | Good, according to the coast guard |
| Identities of the 12 people who died | Not given by the coast guard |
| Cause of death | Not given by the coast guard |
| Route | Libya to Crete |
| Arrivals from Libya in the first three days of November | 1,700, according to Greece migration and asylum minister Thanos Plevris |
What Happened Off Kali Limenes
The first boat was found in the sea south of Crete in the early hours of Monday, November 9, 2026. It was about 15 nautical miles from the coast, which is about 28 km, and it was off Kali Limenes, a port on the southern coast of the island. The vessel was carrying migrants, and it was spotted by a passing Moroccan-flagged container ship. The ship was a cargo vessel passing through the area, and its crew saw the boat and reported it, which set the rescue response in motion.
When the Greek coast guard reached the boat, its officers found 12 people who had died on board. The bodies were recovered from the boat. At the same time, 18 people from the same boat were rescued alive and brought to safety by the coast guard. Kali Limenes sits on the southern coast of Crete, facing the open sea toward Libya, and a small boat in open water can be hard to see.
Three Operations in One Night
The boat off Kali Limenes was the first of three operations. In two separate operations overnight, two more boats were found in the sea south of Crete. A Frontex aircraft spotted a boat carrying about 47 people some 30 nautical miles south of Kali Limenes. A Frontex drone located another boat with about 40 people on board 31 nautical miles to the southeast.
When the three operations are counted together, about 117 people were found, of whom 105 were rescued alive, the coast guard said. The first boat held the 12 people who died and the 18 people who were rescued alive, which is 30 people in all. The second boat held about 47 people, and the third boat held about 40 people. Added together, those figures give about 117 people found across the three boats. The 12 deaths were on the first boat alone.
The People on Board
The coast guard has said very little about the people who were on the three boats, and that restraint should be respected. The identities of the 12 people who died have not been given. Their nationalities have not been confirmed. Their ages have not been given. The way in which they died has not been given. The same is true in broad terms for the survivors, about whom the coast guard has given numbers but not personal details.
That lack of detail is not unusual in the first hours after a rescue at sea, when identification takes time. The 12 people who died were real people whose names are not yet known, and they should not be reduced to a number alone. Weather in the area was good at the time, the coast guard said.
The Libya to Crete Route
Crete has become one of the main entry points into the European Union for migrants departing from Libya and attempting the crossing to Greece. That fact is central to understanding why three boats were found in the sea south of the island in a single night. The crossing from Libya to Crete is a sea journey across open water, and the boats found on this night were all in the stretch of sea between Libya and the southern coast of Crete.
The route has grown in importance, and Crete, as the large island at the southern edge of Greece, is the first land that many of those boats aim for. Kali Limenes, on the southern coast, faces directly toward Libya, and the distances given in the coast guard account, 15 nautical miles, 30 nautical miles, and 31 nautical miles from the coast, show boats approaching the island from the south. The other two boats were found by Frontex, using an aircraft and a drone. Our earlier report on a migrant boat tragedy off Senegal covers a separate incident, linked here only as related coverage.
A Sharp Rise in Arrivals From Libya
The incident off Crete comes amid a sharp increase in migrant arrivals on Crete from Libya. Greece migration and asylum minister Thanos Plevris said 1,700 people had arrived from Libya in the first three days of November. That figure, 1,700 people in three days, gives a clear measure of the scale of the increase, and it puts the three boats found on the night of November 9 into a wider context of many arrivals in a short period.
Greece is preparing for a possible migration crisis, according to the verified account. That preparation reflects concern in Athens that arrivals from Libya could keep growing. The sharp increase is a trend measured over days, and the three boats found on the night of November 9 are part of that trend. About 117 people were found in three operations in one night, and that night followed three days in which 1,700 people had already arrived from Libya. Our coverage of the flooding that hit displaced families in Gaza is linked here as related coverage, not as part of the Crete account.
What Happens Next
The verified account does not give detail on what happens next for the survivors, or on what further steps the coast guard will take in the sea south of Crete. It does not give detail on the identification of the 12 people who died, or on when further information about them might be released. Those questions remain open, and they can only be answered by further statements from the Greek coast guard or from the Greek government.
What is clear is that Greece is preparing for a possible migration crisis, and that the minister figure of 1,700 arrivals in the first three days of November will be the starting point for any further discussion of that preparation. The incident off Crete, with 12 dead and 105 rescued, will be part of that discussion, because it shows both the scale of the arrivals and the risk faced by those making the crossing. Further reporting should not mix in the separate weekend boat incident reported by some outlets with different numbers. Our report on a train collision in Giza covers a separate incident in Egypt.
FAQs
How many people died in the boat off Crete?
Twelve people were found dead on the boat. Greek authorities recovered the bodies of 12 people from a boat carrying migrants south of Crete early on Monday, November 9, 2026, the Greek coast guard said. The coast guard gave no details about the identities of the 12 people who died, or how they died.
How many people were rescued?
In all, about 117 people were found in the three operations, of whom 105 were rescued alive, the coast guard said. That total includes 18 people rescued alive from the same boat on which the 12 people died.
Where was the boat found?
The boat was found about 15 nautical miles, about 28 km, south of Crete, off the port of Kali Limenes, also spelled Kaloi Limenes, on the southern coast of the island. A passing Moroccan-flagged container ship spotted the vessel.
Why are so many migrants arriving on Crete from Libya?
Crete has become one of the main entry points into the European Union for migrants departing from Libya and attempting the crossing to Greece. Greece migration and asylum minister Thanos Plevris said 1,700 people had arrived from Libya in the first three days of November, and Greece is preparing for a possible migration crisis.
Sources
Final Thoughts
Twelve people died on a boat south of Crete, and 105 people were rescued alive across three operations in a single night. Those two numbers, held together, describe both the loss and the rescue that took place early on Monday, November 9, 2026. The boat was found about 15 nautical miles south of the island, off Kali Limenes, after a passing Moroccan-flagged container ship spotted it. Eighteen people were rescued alive from that same boat, and two more boats were found overnight by Frontex, one by aircraft and one by drone.
Their identities and the cause of death have not been given, and no cause should be guessed at and no nationality should be assumed. The incident comes amid a sharp increase in arrivals from Libya, with 1,700 people arriving in the first three days of November, according to minister Thanos Plevris, and with Greece preparing for a possible migration crisis.
