More than 230 migrants reach Greece in small boats, half via the long route from Libya

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Authorities say more than 230 migrants have reached Greece in small boats over the past two days, including a rare case of a crossing from north Africa to Greece’s southern mainland. Nearly half the arrivals announced Friday were people who took a new route from eastern Libya that has emerged this year and is longer and riskier than the more common crossing from Turkey. The coast guard said 75 migrants who had left from eastern Libya were rescued Friday from a crippled boat south of the island of Crete. They were picked up in the Mediterranean Sea by a merchant ship after issuing a distress call.