The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) launched an investigation of the traffickers who sent Pakistani migrants abroad who died Sunday after their boat capsized in southern Italy.
As of Monday, the incident had killed 62 people, mostly Pakistanis.
FIA teams were formed on Monday to investigate and apprehend the traffickers who illegally sent the victims.
The agency has started calling the deceased’s heirs, mostly from Gujrat, Punjab.
On Monday, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif tweeted that “over two dozen Pakistanis” were on the boat.
“Deeply concerning and worrisome” reports prompted him to order the Foreign Office to gather information and “take the nation into confidence.”
As the death toll reached 62 on Monday, Foreign Office spokeswoman Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said a senior embassy official met with 16 Pakistani survivors.
They looked fit. They tweeted that the ship had 20 Pakistanis.
The embassy is working with Italian authorities to find four missing Pakistanis.
Reuters reported that the ship, which had left Turkiye’s Izmir four days earlier, was hit by a storm near Steccato di Cutro on Calabria’s eastern coast.
Rescuers reported many Afghans and Iranians, and most victims’ bodies washed up on the shore near the ship’s sinking.
A Crotone sports hall held dozens of coffins for the funeral. Residents placed flowers and candles on metal railings outside in respect.
The ship was thought to have 180 to 200 passengers when it left Turkiye, so that many passengers may have died or gone missing. However, local authorities reported 80 survivors.
The shipwreck has sparked a migration debate in Europe and Italy. In addition, the newly elected right-wing government’s strict new laws for migrant rescue charities have drawn the UN and other’s criticism.
“These tragedies are the collateral damages of Italian and European policies, protecting borders and reducing safe and regular passage to Europe,” said Marco Bertotto, MSF’s Italy director.
The interior minister, Matteo Piantedosi, blamed human traffickers and the families who traveled for the deaths.
Desperate travelers should never risk their children’s lives.
Italian news outlet RaiNews reports that local law enforcement has arrested three alleged smugglers.
Two migrants were arrested Monday after recognizing them. One survivor was arrested Sunday for trafficking.
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