NICOSIA, Cyprus,March 18, (AP): A major rescue operation continued Tuesday off the southern coast of Cyprus after a migrant boat sank in international waters, with no additional survivors or bodies found since the initial recovery, official said. Authorities Monday said seven bodies had been recovered and two people rescued some 45 kilometers (28 miles) south of Cyprus. Officials said the boat was believed to be carrying at least 20 Syrians.

The island republic's Joint Rescue Coordination Center confirmed an ongoing operation involving military helicopters, rescue vessels and drones, assisted by a helicopter from a British base on Cyprus. "As time passes and no other people are found, hope naturally and dramatically diminishes,” Defense Minister Vasilis Palmas told a press briefing late Monday.

The rescue effort is taking place amid rising irregular border crossings in the eastern Mediterranean, according to the European Union border protection agency Frontex, despite a broader decline across the bloc. Cypriot officials said they continue to monitor increased maritime movement from Lebanon and Syria amid ongoing regional instability. Justice Minister Marios Hartsiotis said the first survivor had been spotted during a routine patrol. After that, he said, "the response was immediate, which is why we managed to save the second person very quickly.”