113 migrants rescued off Greece: coastguard

ATHENS: A total of 113 migrants were rescued on Tuesday after their boat issued a distress call off the western Greek island of Paxi, the coastguard said.

The migrants were rescued by a cargo ship and were all safe and sound, they said. They are being taken to Patras port in southwestern Greece.

The coastguard had received a distress call in the afternoon after high winds of nearly 70 kilometres per hour (45 mph) buffeted the area.

The authorities had asked three ships in the vicinity -- two cargo ships and a tanker -- to rescue them.

Last year's closure of the so-called Balkan migrant route and an EU-Turkey deal aimed at stemming the influx into Greece has seen a spike in the number of people desperately trying to reach Europe via Italy.