Ankara, Dec 26 (TIWN) Seven people were killed as a migrant boat capsized in Turkey's Lake Van region on Thursday, authorities said.

The boat sank in Lake Van as it approached the town of Adilcevaz in Bitlis province, the provincial governor’s office said in a statement. It was carrying migrants from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh.  Five of the migrants were found dead in the lake while two others died in a hospital, the statement said.  Turkey is a main crossing point for migrants trying to reach Europe.  It was not immediately clear why the migrants were traveling on a boat and not by road. The lake is close to Iran but lies within Turkey’s borders.