ATHENS, Dec 22 — A massive search and rescue operation was underway today off the Greek island of Folegandros, after a dinghy carrying migrants sank, with an unknown number of people missing, the Greek coast guard said.

The coast guard said it had rescued 12 people, including children. 

But there were conflicting reports about exactly how many people had been on the boat, with some survivors putting the number at 32, while others said as many as 50 were on board, a coast guard official told AFP.

Four coast guard vessels, two Navy and air force helicopters, a military transport plane, five nearby ships and three private vessels were all taking part in the search and rescue operation, the coast guard said.

The operation began late Tuesday, after the coast guard received information that a vessel carrying migrants had run into trouble and had started taking on water, south of the island.

Those rescued—seven Iraqis, three Syrians and two Egyptians—were all transferred to the hospital on the island of Santorini. 

Nearly one million people, mainly Syrian refugees, arrived in the EU in 2015 after crossing to Greek islands close to Turkey.

Scores of refugees and migrants have drowned in the Aegean Sea trying to make the perilous crossing. 

About 8,500 asylum-seekers have arrived in Greece this year, most of them through its north-eastern land border with Turkey, according to data by the UNHCR. — AFP