Six reasons for why migrant boats keep sinking off Turkey, Greece

At least 12 migrants, believed to be Syrians, became the latest victims of a worsening refugee crisis when two boats sank after leaving southwestern Turkey for the Greek island of Kos on Sept. 2.  

Photos showing the dead body of a child washing ashore infuriated the Turkish public and caused many to ask how come so many boats sink so frequently on a usually calm sea dotted with islands between two modern states. 

The following overarching, intersecting rationales provide some explanation to these tragic incidents:

1) Storms

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The Aegean is usually calm in summers, incomparable to the rough seas between Italy and Libya which constitute another deadly migrant route. However, occasional storms on the Aegean can still sink small boats even during short cruises. Most recently on June 23, six Syrians died when they attempted to get to the Greek island of Kos from the Turkish resort of Bodrum. The death toll could have been much higher if the Turkish coast guard did not rescue 60 migrants from the sea at dawn.

2) Human traffickers

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After the sinking of a boat on the Aegean that killed 61 migrants in 2012, human traffickers were accused as possible culprits. It was then reported that smugglers could have "sacrificed" the migrants by sinking the ship to dodge the Turkish Coast Guard, before leaving them behind with dinghies.

3) Migrants themselves

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Turkish media reported on Aug. 25 that 120 Syrians sank their own boats between Turkey's Bodrum and Greece's Kos when the Greek coast guard prevented them from landing on the beach. In sinking themselves, the migrants hoped to be collected from the sea by Greeks, not Turks, their rescue allowing them step on...