Scores of people dead and many missing after boat capsizes off Greece

At least 79 people have died after a boat they were on sank off the Greek coast, the country's coastguard said on Wednesday, as fears mounted that the final death toll could be much higher.

Some 100 people were also rescued after the boat capsized in international waters in the Ionian Sea, in an operation complicated by strong winds.

A Greek migration ministry source told AFP that, according to the coastguard, there could have been "hundreds" of people on the fishing boat.

"We fear there will be a very large number of missing persons," the official said.

The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) acknowledged fears of a large number of missing people, noting in a tweet: "We fear more lives were lost. Initial reports suggest up to 400 people were onboard."

Greece's head of state, President Katerina Sakellaropoulou, said she would visit the port of Kalamata later on Wednesday to confer with senior officials on the rescue and accommodation response.

A rescue operation was underway, including navy vessels, an army plane, a helicopter and six other boats in the area.

The Greek coastguard said that "since very early [on] Wednesday, an extensive rescue operation [has been] underway off Pylos, after a fishing boat capsized with a large number of migrants onboard".

'We fear more lives were lost. Initial reports suggest up to 400 people were onboard'

- International Organisation for Migration

Nearly 30 people have been taken to the port's hospital, though the coastguard limited the number to just four.

A surveillance plane with Europe's Frontex agency spotted the boat on Tuesday afternoon, but the passengers had "refused any help", the coastguard said. 

Greek authorities said that it appeared the people onboard had departed from Libya heading for Italy, with none of them not wearing a life jacket. The authorities did not immediately disclose their nationalities.

The migration ministry will begin looking for accommodation for those rescued once they are processed by the coastguard to determine gender and nationality, an official said.

Television footage showed emergency tents being set up at the port town of Kalamata.

The worst migrant tragedy in Greece was in June 2016 when a boat capsized leaving at least 320 people listed as dead or missing, according to AFP records going back to 1993.

The IOM until Wednesday had listed 48 people missing in the eastern Mediterranean so far this year, compared to 378 in 2022.

Boat rescued off Crete

In a separate incident on Wednesday, a sailing boat in distress carrying about 80 people off the Crete coast was rescued by a coastguard patrol and towed to port, Greece's port police said.

Along with Italy and Spain, Greece has been one of the main landing points for tens of thousands of people seeking to reach Europe from Africa and the Middle East.

Greece is also facing an increase of crossing attempts from Turkey on southern routes near the Cyclades islands and toward the Peloponnese peninsula, hoping to avoid patrols in the northern Aegean Sea.

Last month, the Greek government came under international pressure over video footage reportedly showing the forceful expulsion of migrants who were set adrift at sea.

Greece and other EU member states on the southern and southeastern rim of the bloc say they are being unfairly tasked with managing the arrivals of undocumented people.