The coffins with the 65 dead are on display in a gymnasium from the wreck of the wooden boat which was carrying migrants and crashed into the rocks in the early hours of Sunday (2/26) in Italy. Among them five children in white coffins. The wreck happened in the area of ​​Stecato di Cutro, a seaside resort on the eastern coast of Calabria. Twenty-eight victims have been identified so far, including 25 Afghans, one Palestinian, one Pakistani and one Syrian.
The coffins of the victims, decorated with flowers, have been placed at PalaMilone, a sports center in Crotone, a town of nearly 60,000 people, where a memorial service will be held today. The coffins are placed in three rows on the floor of the sports center, having initially been left open so that relatives and friends could identify the victims.
According to Frontex, which was the first to spot the vessel on Saturday night, about 200 people were crammed into it, while the Italian port authorities spoke of 150 passengers. Only 79 people, from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Somalia, Iran, the Palestinian territories and Syria, survived.
Pakistan’s foreign ministry has announced that 20 Pakistani nationals were on board, of which 16 were rescued.
The nephew of an Afghan survivor – who lost his wife and three children aged 5, 8 and 12 in the wreck – arrived in Italy from Germany to care for his uncle and his only child, aged 14, who survived the tragedy. The young man told reporters that he wants to take the bodies of his relatives to Germany or Afghanistan.
8,000 euros per person
In front of the sports center, many residents of the city had gathered yesterday, lighting candles and leaving flowers in memory of the victims. “We go to this beach in the summer. It will be a memory that will stay with all the residents, to remember that there were so many victims, especially these children and young people,” said Daniela Brugano.
A total of 14 minors are among the victims identified so far, according to figures announced yesterday by Italian Interior Minister Matteo Piadentossi.
It is one of the deadliest shipwrecks in the central Mediterranean, the world’s deadliest migration route.
The police arrested three people yesterday believed to be the traffickers, two Pakistanis and a Turk. According to the Italian agency AGI, they allegedly received 5,000 to 8,000 euros from each migrant.
The wooden boat, named “Summer Love,” left Izmir, Turkey on February 23, rescuers told the Red Cross.
Many non-governmental organizations, such as Doctors Without Borders (MSF), have sent teams to help survivors, including children who saw their relatives drown.
Frontex said that on Saturday night one of its patrol planes spotted the vessel, which was “overcrowded”, heading for Italy and informed the country’s authorities.
“There were no indications that (the occupants) were in danger,” the agency said, adding that its plane left the area due to low fuel.
Frontex also pointed out that Italy sent two ships to the area where the wooden vessel was, but they were forced to return to port due to bad weather and rough seas.
For its part, the Italian Coast Guard assured that Frontex had indeed located the vessel, but “only one person appeared” to be on board. According to Italy’s interior ministry, nearly 14,000 migrants have arrived in Italy since the start of the year, compared to about 5,200 in the same period last year.
The UN’s Missing Migrants Project has recorded more than 20,000 deaths and disappearances in the central Mediterranean since 2014, of which more than 220
Source: News Beast
With 6 years of experience, I bring to the table captivating and informative writing in the world news category. My expertise covers a range of industries, including tourism, technology, forex and stocks. From brief social media posts to in-depth articles, I am dedicated to creating compelling content for various platforms.
