A boat carrying migrants sank in the Mediterranean off the coast of Greece last week. Hundreds of people are expected to die in this boat sinking. The BBC has obtained some information about the sinking of the ship, which does not match the comments of the Greek coast guard. The BBC analyzed the movements of other ships in the area of the Mediterranean where the ship sank. The analysis showed that the fishing boat overloaded with migrants was at sea for at least seven hours before it sank. The ship was not moving. However, the Greek Coast Guard still claims that the ship was moving during this period. The ship was on its way to Italy. There was no need to salvage the boat at that time. Greek authorities have so far not responded to a BBC inquiry into the sinking. At least 78 people have died in the boat sinking incident. However, the United Nations says that about 500 people are still missing in this incident. It is now being said by various parties that a full-scale rescue effort should have been launched before the ship sank. In such a context, the United Nations has called for an investigation into Greece's role in dealing with the accident. According to Greek officials, the people on board (the migrants) said they did not want help. They were not even in danger until the boat sank. The BBC has obtained a computer animation of tracking data from maritime analytics platform Marine Traffic. This marine traffic data shows that the vessel floated for hours in a small, defined area of the Mediterranean Sea. The boat later sank in the same area. This information casts doubt on the Greek authorities' interpretation. Doubts about Greece's commentary The European Union's (EU) border force, Frontex, said it first spotted the vessel around 8am GMT last Tuesday. Later they reported this information to the Greek authorities. Alarm Phone, an organization that helps migrants in peril at sea, said they received a call at 12.17pm GMT on Tuesday. They learned from the call that the ship was in distress at sea. The BBC has analyzed various data including verified video-still images in the investigation of the sinking of the ship. The movements of various ships in the respective areas of the Mediterranean during the mentioned period have also been analyzing. Marine Traffic's animation shows a vessel named Lucky Sailor suddenly turning north in the area around 3pm GMT. The owners of the Lucky Sailor have provided the logbook to the BBC. The Greek Coast Guard instructed the Lucky Sailor to approach the boat carrying the migrants and provide food and water to those on board, the ship's owner confirmed. About half an hour later, at 3:35 a.m. GMT, the Greek Coast Guard helicopter located the vessel. Greek authorities claim the ship was on a scheduled course at the time. But two and a half hours later, at around 6pm GMT, another ship named Faithful Warrior was spotted in the same sea area. They also provided support to the boat. The owner of the Warrior ship asked the BBC to contact the relevant investigators. Captured from the Warrior ship—the video shows aid being delivered to the vessel via a rope. The video did not show the presence of another vessel at the scene. The BBC has scrutinized and analyzed the video footage obtained. The video footage did not show the boat moving. The vessel seen in the video footage matches the still images obtained. However, it is not known when exactly the video was recorded. Greek officials initially claimed the ship was on course between 7:40pm and 10:40pm GMT. Greece's initial statement said the country's coastguard was monitoring the vessel from a careful distance. But later they released a 'close-up' picture. But in this picture, the boat seems to be going nowhere. A Greek government spokesman later said members of the coastguard attempted to board the vessel to assess the risk. But the people in the boat removed the rope. They did not seek help. All shipping activity in the relevant sea area during the seven hours prior to the accident indicated that the vessel had made very little progress. According to the animated map data, the ship has traveled only a few nautical miles. Winds and waves in the deepest part of the Mediterranean may have caused the ship to cross this route. In addition, due to the movement of distressed migrants, the boat may travel some distance at sea due to turbulence. Greek officials insist the vessel was not in any danger during the period mentioned. The ship was safely on its way to Italy. So the Greek coastguard did not attempt to rescue the vessel. The boat sank at 11pm GMT with hundreds of migrants on board. Meanwhile, the tracking animation shows multiple ships heading to the scene to help. Among the ships was the Celebrity Beyond. Video was captured from the ship. This video came to the BBC after the accident. The Mayan Queen, a luxury yacht in the area, was then ordered to help take 104 migrants ashore. Those who were rescued reached the port of Kawabata in Greece safely. But there are many questions about the role of Greece in this incident
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