Geneva, Oct 23 (IANS): Over 48,000 sea arrivals were reported in Greece between October 17 and 21, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) reported on Friday.

Representing the highest weekly migration inflow so far this year, this amounts to some 9,600 migrants and refugees arriving each day on Greek soil over the five-day period, Xinhua news agency reported.

IOM indicated that most of the migrants departing from neighbouring Turkey arrived on the Greek island of Lesvos, which saw 27,276 people reach its shores during the period, while 9,750 arrived in Chios.

Located to the south of Lesvos, Chios was receiving 300 migrants each day during the peak summer period, a number which jumped to some 2,000 a day last week.

This rise of arrivals has been matched by an increase of deaths at sea, with 18 migrants believed to have lost their lives since October 19 in the eastern Mediterranean passage.

IOM figures show that 3,175 deaths have been reported so far this year in the Mediterranean, compared to 3,149 for the whole of last year.