Rescue services have resumed the search for Turkish nationals who drowned in the Sava river near Svilaj, the northern border point between Bosnia and Croatia.

Unofficially, the group includes a family of two children, their parents, and one more man.

The incident was first reported to the Police Station in the northern town of Odzak on December 20, and a day later the Turkish embassy in Bosnia and Herzegovina issued the first official statement on this case.

It was assumed that the persons in question were migrants who attempted to illegally cross the border with Croatia but they went missing after the boat they used to cross the Sava river sank down.

Although the weather conditions go in favour the participants in the search, the operation is hampered by minefields stretched along the entire length of the Sava bank in the area where the search is taking place, on the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In addition, reduced visibility is another obstacle in the search, as well as the high water level and the large amount of garbage and trees floating on the Sava river.

Members of specialized water and underwater rescue units are looking for the missing persons with the necessary equipment, boats and drones, and after scouting the terrain and aerial photography, a visual inspection from boats and a search of the wider Sava river began.

Members of the civil protection administrations of Bosnia's Federation and Republika Srpska entities, Croatia, as well as TURKEY's AFAD, HGSS and the Croatian police, are participating in the search.