ISTANBUL: The death toll from a ferry accident off northern Cyprus rose to 12 on Friday after rescuers found the bodies of two women, with another 16 people still missing, officials said.
The FiloJet ferry was carrying 267 people when it capsized shortly after departing from Kyrenia port on the northern shore of the divided island around midday on Sunday.
Rescuers managed to pull 239 people to safety, giving an initial count of eight dead and 20 missing with officials saying they believed they had gone down with the ship.
Round-the-clock rescue efforts have since recovered the bodies of four more victims, the latest two on Friday morning, raising the toll to 12, according to authorities in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), which is only recognised by Ankara.
"The bodies of two more people have been recovered," TRNC prime minister Unal Ustel wrote on X, indicating both were women.
"Search operations.. are continuing 24/7 in order to reach our 16 missing people," he said as a team of specialist divers and naval drones probed the wreckage which is lying at a depth of 514 metres (1,686 feet).
Since Wednesday morning, two specialist Turkish naval vessels equipped with underwater drones have been working to find the remaining victims.
Before the latest bodies were found, officials said the eight dead were all Turkish nationals, indicating that 18 of the 20 missing were also Turkish while the last two were from northern Cyprus.
They have not given any further details about the nationalities of the two four bodies recovered since Wednesday night.
So far, investigators have been unable to retrieve the ferry's voyage data recorder (VDR) -- its "black box" -- which should give a clearer indication of what led to the ferry capsizing.
The ferry's captain and eight others were remanded in custody on Monday on charges of negligent homicide, and returned to the court in Kyrenia -- Girne in Turkish -- for a second hearing on Thursday.
At that hearing, police investigators said the catastrophe could have been avoided had the captain reduced speed and carefully turned back to port when the ferry started taking on water, media reports said.