Lahore: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has opened an investigation into the network of traffickers who sent Pakistani migrants abroad who perished on Sunday when their boat capsized off the coast of southern Italy.
Meanwhile, the number of fatalities increased to 62 on Monday, with the majority of the dead reportedly being Pakistanis.
The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) announced on Monday that teams have been assembled to look into the situation and apprehend the traffickers who had illegally sent the victims.
The agency has also begun getting in touch with the deceased’s heirs, the most of whom were from the Gujrat area of Punjab.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said “about two dozen Pakistanis” were on the yacht in a tweet on Monday.
He instructed the Foreign Office to gather information and “take the nation into confidence” while describing the reports as “very disturbing and worrying”.
A top embassy official has met with 16 Pakistani survivors, according to Foreign Office Spokesman Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, as the dead toll rose to 62 on Monday.
They appeared to be in good physical shape. The representative said in a tweet that there were 20 Pakistanis on the ship.
With the purpose of confirming the whereabouts of four missing Pakistanis, “[the] embassy is in regular communication with Italian authorities.”
According to Reuters, the ship, which had departed from the port of Turkiye’s Izmir four days prior, was stricken by a storm close to the beach resort of Steccato di Cutro on the eastern coast of Calabria.
Several Afghans and some Iranians, according to the rescuers, were also on board.
According to Reuters, some of the bodies were found in the sea, but many of the victims’ bodies washed up on the land not far from where the ship sank.
The nearby town of Crotone prepared for a funeral by setting up dozens of coffins in a sports hall as residents piled flowers and candles on the metal railings outside as a sign of respect.
Although 80 persons were reported as having escaped the tragedy by local authorities, it is likely that there were between 180 and 200 passengers on board when the ship departed Turkiye.
The shipwreck has sparked a discussion on migration in Europe and Italy, where the right-wing government’s strict new restrictions for migrant rescue organisations have garnered criticism from the UN and others.
According to Marco Bertotto, director of programmes at MSF in Italy, “These tragedies are the result of the tragic collateral damages of Italian and European policy, safeguarding borders and restricting safe and regular entry to Europe.”
Matteo Piantedosi, the interior minister, has disputed that the government is to fault for the deaths, blaming instead human traffickers and the families who embarked on the voyage.
According to him, “Desperation can never excuse travelling in circumstances that put the lives of their children in peril.”
According to Italian news outlet RaiNews, the local law enforcement authorities have so far detained three accused smugglers.
On Monday, two persons were detained after being recognised by some migrants. One survivor was detained earlier on Sunday on suspicion of trafficking.
