FO names 21 boat tragedy survivors

ISLAMABAD / GUJRAT: The Foreign Office has released the names of 21 Pakistanis who survived after staying adrift in the Atlantic Ocean on a boat while attempting to illegally enter Europe.

The boat with 86 migrants, including 66 Pakistanis on board, left the West African country of Mauritania for Spain’s Canary Islands on Jan 2.

However, it never reached its destination and docked in Morocco on Thursday after staying in the open sea for almost two weeks.

At least 44 Pakistani immigrants on board are presumed dead either by drowning or alleged torture, while Moroccan authorities rescued 36 people. 10 dead bodies were also recovered from the boat.

Says Pakistan embassy in Morocco making arrangements to repatriate Pakistanis

According to a statement by FO on Sunday, the 21 Pakistanis who survived the tragedy are being housed in Dakhla, a coastal city in Western Morocco.

The survivors identified by the FO were Muddassir Hussain, 31; Waseem Khalid, 36; Muhammad Khaliq, 45; Abdul Ghaffar, 24; Gul Shameer, 21; Tanveer Ahmed, 32; Syed Muhammad Abbas Kazmi, 26; Ghulam Mustafa, 20; Syed Badar Mohyud din, 35; Imran Iqbal, 34; Shoaib Zafar, 35; Ali Hassan, 23; Syed Mehtabul Hassan, 19; Uzair Basharat, 27; Mohammad Asif, 49; Mujahid Ali, 31; Amir Ali, 21; Mohammad Umar Farooqie, 20; Bilawal Iqbal, 26; Arsalan, 22; and Irfan Ahmad, 40.

“Through our diplomatic mission in Rabat, immediate assistance has been mobilised for the affected nationals,” the FO said in its statement.

“The embassy has arranged essential provisions including food, water, medicine, and clothing,” it said, adding that local authorities were providing shelter and medical care to the survivors.

A team from Pakistan’s embassy in Morocco was in Dakhla to oversee relief operations and coordinate with local authorities.

The FO said it was coordinating with the Moroccan authorities to ensure “comprehensive support” for the affected citizens and their repatriation.

“We are committed to safeguarding the welfare of overseas Pakistanis and will continue to monitor the situation closely.”

Action against ‘traffickers’

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Gujranwala Zone has lodged at least four cases against eight human traffickers based in Gujrat, Sialkot and Gujranwala districts.

The names of at least eight human traffickers who allegedly made travel arrangements for the boat tragedy victims have already been included in the stop list to prevent them from travelling abroad.

Among the suspects arrested so far is a woman, the mother of Fahad alias Fahdi Gujjar of Jaura Karnana, who is allegedly the ring leader of the traffickers.

A senior FIA official told Dawn that a car belonging to Gujjar was also confiscated during a raid at his house.

He had allegedly sent at least 28 people from his area to Spain, charging them Rs 4 to 4.5 million each.

The agency has also identified at least three bank accounts allegedly belonging to Gujjar and his other accomplices. The process to seize these accounts and Gujjar’s other assets will be initiated today (Monday), according to FIA.

FIA Gujranwala and Gujrat circles have also approached the families of survivors to seek details about human traffickers.

The agency has pinned its hopes on the detailed report by the high-ranking government team, which has gone to Morocco to probe the incident on the directives of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

The team, headed by Additional Secretary Interior Salman Chaudhary, included Additional DG FIA (North) Muneer Maarth and two officials of the Foreign Office and Intelligence Bureau.

PM Shehbaz has also sought a report on the incident and ordered strict action against the human traffickers.

A record 10,457 migrants, or 30 people a day, died trying to reach Spain in 2024, most while attempting to cross the Atlantic route from West African countries such as Mauritania and Senegal to the Canary Islands, according to Walking Borders.

Last month, more than 80 Pakistanis reportedly died in a boat, which capsized near Greece.

Following the tragedy, the FIA booked and dismissed more than 30 of its officers for allegedly colluding with human smugglers in illegally sending Pakistanis abroad.

Published in Dawn, January 20th, 2025