Coast guard recover four bodies in sea off Rhodes

Coast guard officers have recovered four bodies, believed to be of migrants, in a search and rescue operation off the coast of Rhodes.

The bodies are those of three men and one woman, according to reports.

At the same time, police have found 25 people on the island.

The operation, focused in the Prasonisi area, in the south of the island, involves a coast guard patrol boat, two aircraft and a land vehicle.

More than 48,000 migrants reached Greece in January-October, the second largest number in southern Europe behind Italy, including more than 5,500 arrivals on Rhodes, according to data from the United Nations refugee agency UNHCR.

The number of arrivals later dropped before surging again last year, overwhelming migrant camps and piling pressure on local communities on the islands.

On Monday, Migration Minister Nikos Panagiotopoulos said...