ISTANBUL, Oct. 22 (Xinhua) -- At least two illegal migrants died after a boat sank off Turkey's Aegean coast on Monday, the Turkish coast guard said.
The inflatable boat carrying migrants capsized near the resort town of Bodrum in the southwestern province of Mugla, the force said in a statement posted on its website.
A total of 20 migrants were rescued, the statement said, noting two of them later died at a hospital.
The rescue operation is continuing as it is not immediately clear how many migrants were on the boat, who were believed to have tried to sneak into a Greek island, said the statement.
The Aegean Sea was once the main route for migrants fleeing into Europe via Turkey. A deal signed between Turkey and the European Union in March 2016 has helped reduce the flow of illegal migration.
A total of 21,249 migrants have attempted to reach the Greek islands via Turkey this year, up from 17,229 over the same period in 2017, according to figures released by the Turkish coast guard.