A newborn has been rescued after being stranded with his parents for three days on the Greek island of Tilos, officials have said.
Human traffickers abandoned a group of refugees on the shores of the Aegean Sea – including pregnant women and babies – without food or water.
The boy, said to be aged just 50 days old, was among the dozens who became trapped in a mountainous area.
As their recourses ran low, his parents were forced to use seawater to make his milk.
After three days, authorities finally rescued the baby, while others were taken away from the area by helicopter.
Mayor of Tilos Maria Kamma shared footage of the operation, showing a man cradling the child in his arms before climbing into an inflatable boat.
In a post on Facebook, she said: ‘The community of Tilos has once again risen to the occasion, lending a shoulder to the refugees.
‘The locals are trying to cope in the best way possible with the “migrant crisis” in their homeland and to help the suffering, the wounded and the distressed people.’
Local media reported the baby was safe and healthy. It is not clear how many people were part of the group.
Maria also said the baby boy was finally given the name Ionas, likening him to the monk who washed up in Tilos and built the monastery of Agios Panteleimon.
She also said human traffickers are creating a ‘scene of despair’ on the island and claimed some refugees have been ‘badly beaten’.
‘Pregnant woman trapped in the mountain, infants and children thrown in steep areas of the island, women injured, men beaten badly by traffickers, make up the scene of despair that my island’s society has been experiencing in recent months,’ the mayor added.
She reported that there has been ‘minimal’ assistance from the outside for the island, but praised volunteers for stepping in to fill the gap and help refugees.
Greece is one of the gateways into Europe for refugees from the Middle East, Asia and Africa.
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