By Abdullah Momand | Nadir Guramani
Published in Dawn on December 15, 2024
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) confirmed on Sunday that one citizen was among the dead in yesterday’s boat capsize incidents in Greece, while 47 Pakistanis were among the rescued.
At least five migrants drowned after their wooden boat, carrying many Pakistanis, capsized off Greece’s southern island of Gavdos, the coastguard said on Saturday, with witnesses saying many were still missing as search operations continued.
Those rescued had been transferred to the island of Crete, the coastguard said, adding that the number of those missing had not yet been confirmed.
Coastguard boats, merchant vessels, an Italian frigate and naval aircraft have been searching the area since Greek authorities were alerted about the incident on Friday night.
In separate incidents on Saturday, a Malta-flagged cargo vessel rescued 47 migrants from a boat sailing about 40 nautical miles off Gavdos, while a tanker rescued another 88 migrants some 28 nautical miles off the tiny island in Greece’s south.
By Sunday evening, MoFA issued a statement announcing that it had identified the 47 rescued Pakistanis and would release the names. “The list is based on the interviews conducted by the Embassy of Pakistan in Athens and the information shared by the Greek authorities,” the statement read.
The Embassy of Pakistan in Athens is in contact with the Hellenic Coast Guard and with the Coast Guard of Chania, which are directly dealing with the search and rescue operation, an earlier statement from the ministry said.
“The Embassy officials have reached Crete to meet with the rescued Pakistanis and provide them with any assistance required.”
MoFA added that it has activated its Crisis Management Unit (CMU) to facilitate Pakistanis in Greece.
Pakistani nationals in Greece were encouraged to contact the CMU at (051-9207887) or (cmu1@mofa.gov.pk)
Families of missing Pakistanis can contact the Embassy of Pakistan to share details at (+30-6943850188), the statement added.
President Asif Ali Zardari expressed deep sorrow over the loss of life in the incident.
“Human trafficking is a heinous act, people lose their loved ones,” the president was quoted as saying in a post on X by PPP. He also stressed the need to intensify measures to prevent human trafficking.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also expressed regret over the incident and directed that all necessary steps be taken. He also directed Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi to submit an inquiry report as soon as possible, a post on X quoted him as saying.
In a separate post on X, Shehbaz noted that the Pakistan Embassy in Athens is working closely with Greek authorities to ascertain details and provide information to families of the victims, which deputy prime minister Ishaq Dar is overseeing.
He added that the government will make all efforts to bring the rescued Pakistanis back home safely, and “take strict action against those involved in this incident of illegal human trafficking.”
Greece was a favoured gateway to the European Union for migrants and refugees from the Middle East, Africa and Asia in 2015-2016, when nearly 1 million people landed on its islands, mostly via inflatable dinghies.
Incidents with migrant boats and shipwrecks off Crete and its tiny neighbour Gavdos, which are relatively isolated in the central Mediterranean, have increased over the past year.
In June 2023, hundreds of migrants drowned when an overcrowded vessel capsized and sank in international waters off the southwestern Greek coastal town of Pylos. It was one of the deadliest boat disasters ever in the Mediterranean Sea and there were at least 209 Pakistanis on the boat.
In April the same year, Pakistanis among dozens dead as two migrant boats sank in the Mediterranean off different towns in western Libya.
Earlier in February, Pakistanis were among 59 people killed when a wooden sailing boat carrying migrants crashed against rocks on the southern Italian coast.
