Nine bodies have been recovered from a passenger vessel that sank off the Iranian coast with 22 people aboard, but five survivors have been rescued, - the official IRNA news agency reported on Sunday.
Rescue officials said they feared most of those on board had been trapped inside the boat when it capsized and sank in bad weather while sailing from the island of Hormuz to Bandar Abbas on Saturday evening.
IRNA reported that the boat had run out of fuel and was tossed about in heavy winds before capsizing. The strong wind also hampered the rescue effort, it said.
