Migrant traffickers changing tactics

The deadly pursuit of migrant traffickers by a Coast Guard patrol boat off the southeastern Aegean island of Symi on Friday has put the spotlight on a conflict raging near Greece's sea borders.

The change in the mode of operation of smuggling rackets, which are now using high speed boats to approach the east Aegean islands, and the recruitment of motivated and often armed operators, have sparked a succession of heated incidents. This has been one of the factors that has led to the increase in migration flows from Turkey to Greece, especially during the summer. "We're no longer dealing with cheap inflatable dinghies with small motors but boats that were used in the past by drug and contraband cigarette trafficking rings," a Cost Guard official told Kathimerini.

The Symi incident led to the death of one migrant when a crew member of a Greek patrol boat opened fire on...