A non-governmental organization founded and run by American millionaire Christopher Catrambone, announced that it will be conducting private rescue operations of migrants and refugees in the Aegean Sea.
The Migrant Offshore Aid Station (MOAS) announced that it will be expanding its Mediterranean sea rescue operations to include the Aegean Sea. The charity has already been conducting private rescue missions in the Mediterranean sea, between Libya and Italy, according to the Guardian.
“As the winter season approaches and casualty rates climb, MOAS will position the 51-meter Topaz Responder, a custom-made emergency response vessel in Greek territorial waters to act as a fast response and patrol search and vessel. The Topaz Responder will host two high-speed rescue vessels on board capable of being launched rapidly or kept on patrol. The two rescue boats will be named Aylan and Galip, in honor of the Kurdi brothers whose deaths shocked the world in September,” MOAS notes.
Migrants and refugees that make the journey from the Turkish shores to the Greek islands, account for the vast majority of new arrivals in the European Union for 2015. The United Nations Refugee Agency claims that 647,000 people have reached the Greek shores since he beginning of this year, while almost than 793,000 have arrived in Europe during the same period. Syrians account for 52% of these arrivals. A total of 3,440 people have died in the Mediterranean Sea in their effort to get to Europe.
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