34 refugees drown after boat sank off Greek island

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Crammed dinghy collapsed 100m from the Greek holiday island of Lesbos
Elsewhere 34 refugees drowned off Farmakonisi, 12 miles from Turkey
Thought to be largest recorded death toll from any accident in Greek waters since the migrant crisis began

Published: 10:25 EST, 13 September 2015 | Updated: 17:00 EST, 13 September 2015

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These heartbreaking images show the terrifying moment an overcrowded dinghy packed with refugees deflated and left them swimming desperately to shore.

One picture shows a breathless fully clothed father carrying his two-month-old baby boy through the water in a rubber ring as their crammed dinghy collapsed 100m from the Greek holiday island of Lesbos.

It comes on the same day 34 refugees drowned off Farmakonisi, believed to be the largest recorded death toll from any single accident in Greek waters since the migrant crisis began.

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A Syrian refugee clings on to his two-month-old baby in a dinghy as he swims desperately towards the shore

Desperate Syrian and Afghan refugees cry for help as their dinghy collapsed before reaching the Greek island

Syrian and Afghan refugees swim towards the sea after their dinghy deflated some 100m away before reaching the Greek island of Lesbos - it came on the same day as 34 refugees drowned off Farmakonisi

The latest deaths in the Aegean Sea came as Athens angrily defended its handling of the mounting migrant crisis in Europe.

Four babies, six boys and five girls died when the boat sank off Farmakonisi, 12 miles from the Turkish mainland.

Another 68 people were plucked alive from the sea while a further 29 managed to swim to safety on a beach on the island, the coastguard said.

The coastguard was also still searching for four children missing when another boat capsized yesterday off Samos, a Greek island close to the Turkish coast.

Refugees try to swim to shore after their dinghy deflated - elsewhere, 34 people drowned off the island of Farmakonisi in the Southern Aegean Sea today

More than 380,000 people have arrived in Europe by sea this year as Europe struggles to cope with the greatest refugee crisis since World War Two

A man is pictured lifting a child in the air as Syrian and Afghan refugees struggle on a deflated dinghy

The crammed dinghy collapsed 100m from the Greek holiday island of Lesbos. One boy is seen being comforted moments arriving reaching the shore

Tens of thousands of migrants from Syria and Afghanistan have braved the treacherously rough seas this year from the Turkish coast to Greece's eastern islands.

More than 380,000 people have arrived in Europe by sea this year, figures from the UN's refugee agency UNHCR showed, including close to 260,000 in Greece and 121,000 in Italy.

They are frequently squeezed together in flimsy and overcrowded inflatable dinghies.

On Lesbos - where 20,000 mainly Syrian refugees have arrived in the past few weeks - a further 10 dinghies arrived within 90 minutes today.

One inflatable carrying about 70 refugees, including many children, burst about 100 metres from the shore, leaving the exhausted refugees with a desperate last swim to safety.

They follow the death of three-year-old Syrian boy Aylan Kurdi whose lifeless body was pictured face down on a Turkish beach, which sparked an international outcry over the human cost of the crisis.

He drowned along with his mother Rihan and five-year-old brother Galip when their boat capsized on a short journey from Turkey to the Greek island of Kos.

A Syrian refugee girl is seen in tears as she is hugged by her brother after arriving on Lesbos in the dinghy

Clambering to safety: Refugees struggle to jump off the dinghy as they reach the Greek island's shoreline

Refugees float in the Aegean Sea after a dinghy packed with refugees collapsed some 100m off Lesbos

Farmakonisi lies midway between Samos and Kos, two of the favored targets for smugglers sending thousands of migrants and refugees daily to Greek islands off Turkey's coast

The latest accident coincided with a plea from Greek interim Prime Minister Vasiliki Thanou for the European Union to agree a more comprehensive policy for dealing with the rising numbers fleeing to the region to escape war and poverty.

She said: 'Greece is strictly applying European and international treaties without ignoring the humanity of the situation'.

The vast majority of refugees reaching Greece quickly head north to other countries, with Germany the most favoured destination.

Europe as a whole is struggling to deal with an enormous influx of people, mostly from Syria but also Afghanistan, Eritrea and other countries, fleeing violence and poverty.

The European Commission announced plans last week for mandatory quotas to share out 120,000 additional asylum seekers among 25 member countries.

But many countries such as Hungary, Czech Republic Slovakia and Romania are opposed to this.

Hungary's Prime Minister, Viktor Orban, today prepared an unprecedented border clampdown.

'These migrants are not coming our way from war zones but from camps in Syria's neighbours...so these people are not fleeing danger and don't need to be scared for their lives, he said.

Hungarian police said 4,330 migrants were detained yesterday and it is rushing to complete a four-metre high (13ft) fence along its border with Serbia, as well as introducing new rules criminalising illegal border crossings and speeding up decisions about asylum requests.

The Czech prime minister also reiterated his position today. In a TV interview, Bohuslav Sobotka said: 'I think it is impossible to retreat...our position is firm.'

Some 10 million people have been forced from their homes in Syria, with almost 500,000 arriving in Europe

Migrants and refugees waiting for buses after crossing the border between Hungary and Austria in Nickelsdorf

Elsewhere today, Germany is to set to reintroduce some form of controls on its border with Austria to cope with the influx of migrants.

It comes after German authorities warned they are at 'the limit' in coping with the migrant crisis as locals say Munich is on the brink of collapse.

Some 13,015 refugees arrived in Munich yesterday alone and 1,400 more are expected to reach the city today - but there are fears it is already at breaking point.

A police spokesman in Munich said: 'Given the numbers from yesterday, it is very clear that we have reached the upper limit of our capacity.'

Federal transport minister Alexander Dobrindt added how 'effective measures are necessary now to stop the influx'.

German Economy Minister Sigmar Gabriel added: 'The European lack of action in the refugee crisis is now pushing even Germany to the limit of its ability'.

Chancellor Angela Merkel yesterday called on Athens, already grappling with a deep economic crisis, to make more effort to protect the EU's external borders.

'We have a second external border, that's between Greece and Turkey, where we need protection. And this protection is at the moment not being guaranteed,' she said.

'Greece needs to take its responsibility... we will also speak with Turkey.'