Daily Times

Pakistan’s mission in Greece confirmed on Thursday that five Pakistanis were among the victims of a migrant boat tragedy off the Greek island of Gavdos last week. However, the mission stated it had “no concrete information” on how many of its nationals remain missing, as reported by Arab News.

A report by a local News channel had claimed that at least 40 Pakistanis were killed in the recent tragedy, citing the embassy in Athens.

An official at the Pakistan mission in Greece said, “So far, we have information of five dead Pakistanis and another 47 who have been rescued. No concrete information of missing persons is with us, and this is the final information available at this time.”

“We are in contact with the authorities who have concluded their special search operation,” he added, noting that regular patrolling would continue, and Greek authorities would keep the mission informed of any new developments.

In response to the local media outlet report, Pakistan’s Foreign Office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch has said that the government had already released the official death toll and had no further details.

“We cannot comment on people’s statements or claims regarding how many Pakistanis were on board until we receive evidence from the investigation,” she said. “It is difficult to verify the claimed figure, as there was no official record of their travel.”

The incident has raised concerns about human trafficking, with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif ordering strict measures to combat the practice and demanding a detailed report on human trafficking involving Pakistani citizens this year.

Meanwhile, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has launched a major crackdown on human smugglers linked to the deadly boat tragedy, registering cases against three traffickers and arresting two of its officers for negligence.

According to an official statement released by FIA on Thursday, the FIA Composite Circle in Faisalabad filed a case against three human traffickers who were allegedly involved in luring Pakistanis into attempting the dangerous journey to Greece.

The traffickers are accused of deceiving victims by promising to send them abroad illegally, a scheme that eventually led to a tragic boat accident.

The statement also revealed that two FIA officers – Inspector Zubair Ashraf and Sub-Inspector Shahid Imran – were arrested for neglecting their duties during passenger screening processes at Faisalabad Airport.

Both officials were posted as shift in-charges at the airport when the 18 victims of the Greece boat disaster passed through the screening process.

“These officers failed in their duties and demonstrated gross negligence during the screening of passengers,” said the FIA.

The investigation indicated that the traffickers had collected substantial sums of money from the victims, including Abdul Rauf, a notorious agent involved in the scheme.

According to the FIA, Abdul Rauf, Abbas Zulfiqar, and Qamar-ul-Zaman are the key figures in the human smuggling ring and have been named in the case.

The FIA has launched an extensive investigation, conducting raids across various regions to apprehend the remaining suspects as the agency confirmed that it is utilising all available resources to dismantle the human trafficking network responsible for this tragedy.