Three detained on trafficking charges following migrant shipwreck

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
1 Mar 15:46
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A migrant boat that departed from Izmir, Turkey, headed toward Italy sunk, leaving hundreds to their fate.

The wreckage from a capsized boat washes ashore at a beach near Cutro, southern Italy, Sunday, Feb. 26, 2023 (AP).

Three people have been detained, based on media reports, for allegedly engaging in human trafficking as the investigation unfolds regarding the migrant shipwreck found on February 26 by the Italian coast guard. The shipwreck claimed the lives of at least 63 migrants, with the death toll expected to reach 100.

According to survivors, the wooden ship contained about 200 migrants from Somalia, Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan. The boat, navigated by a Turkish man and two Pakistani nationals, departed from
Izmir, Turkey, and was headed to Calabria, Italy.

However, they navigated with 200 migrants aboard despite the harsh weather conditions. According to the police spokesperson, the three navigators were taken into custody.

The migrant-carrying boat was apparently detected by the Frontex border agency, which is the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, as it made its way into Italy, but severe weather prevented its patrol boats from intercepting it.

According to the testimonies of the shipwreck survivors, “during the night, near the coast, they heard a loud boom, the boat broke and they all fell into the water.”

Eighty individuals were confirmed to be alive, "including some who managed to reach the shore after the sinking", the coast guard stated.

According to the Pakistani Foreign Ministry, four individuals remain missing as 16 others have been confirmed alive.

Sergio Di Dato, from Doctors without Borders, stated that about 12 minors are believed to have been amongst the dead, while several were left orphaned.

"They are heavily traumatized, some children have lost their whole family," Di Dato said.