(ANSAMed) - ATHENS, 07 MAR - A man and two children died on Thursday when a boat they were travelling on sank just off the coast of the Aegean island of Samos in Greece.



According to Hellenic Coast Guard, a boat identified and rescued 11 migrants in the sea, including three children, while one man was still missing after a search operation involving three vessels and a Greek navy helicopter.



Unfortunately, two of the children perished during their transportation back to land, while later the body of the missing man was recovered from the sea.



The remaining rescued migrants were taken to Samos port for identification and registration processes.



The warm Spring-like temperatures have seen an increase in attempts by migrants in boats crossing over from the Turkish coast, with a spike in activity in the North East Aegean region in recent days.

Only last week Greece's Minister for Migration Policy Dimitris Vitsas said that the number of refugees and migrants on the Aegean islands has increased significantly.

There were a total of 1,485 new arrivals in February compared to 1,139 during the same period last year, while Vitsas said that Samos is "under particular pressure."

Overall, it is estimated that Greece's population of asylum seekers will surpass the 90,000 mark by the end of 2019 at current rates - this is up from approximately 75,000 at the moment.

With its current systems and infrastructure, Vitsas commented that Greece has the capacity to process only 20,000 asylum applications every year, whereas the number of applications received in 2018 were a massive 67,000.

As has been well documented, the Eastern Aegean islands of Samos, Lesvos, and Chios are bearing the brunt of the ongoing crisis, with limited facilities and overcrowded camps a common feature now since 2015.

Human rights groups and NGO's are a source of constant criticism for the Greek government, with the latest report from the Council of Europe's Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) last month lamenting the "inhuman and degrading conditions" at the country's migrant camps. (ANSAmed).